Sidewalks and street where ones that were the steel
and concrete stead of trees.
New York Washington Chicago Philadelphia Pittsburgh
American cities big cities bigger biggest all have one important thing
in every one of our cities whatever its size
or location is a crossroad ation.
The first settlements were founded as a transfer point where there was a change
from one form of transferred to another for from the beginning to lose were needed
as well as medicine clothing weapons goods they could get from Europe only by trade
and trade as always was dependent on transportation by land
and by water.
So towns stranded around busy harbors and Ling goods
and passengers first on the East Coast.
Then on the Gulf much later on the West Coast other
cities likewise began as rivers
or link transfer boys on the great inland waterway cities have grown
where there was water to turn the wheels a factory near
Mineral Resources.
Where there was always higher coal and near refineries of these resources.
Some cities grew midway between sources of raw materials used in the manufacture of
a finished product such a steel
others grew near inland transfer point where products of the surrounding rural
region were brought to the story
or shipped to larger markets certain cities situated in
mild even climates have grown as centers for relaxation
and convalescence from the start.
Certainly young towns expanded faster than the rest as commerce grew
and transfer points industry business
and communication tended to centralise in those cities proximity of raw materials
and labor naturally stimulated further growth
the greatest expansion followed the Civil War industrial centers grew by leaps
and bounds as factories doubled and tripled.
After eight hundred ninety waves of immigrants many bringing urban skilled swell
the size of our city again new types of farm machinery cut down the
number of people needed on farms young people headed for the cities to live
and work
and with the passing decade those cities grew fastest
that were situated as transfer points handling goods
and services of the nation's most productive areas.
Physically a handful of our cities were planned from the start.
Like Washington's famed wheel and spoke design.
And the gridiron pattern a popular nineteenth century city plan.
But due to the incredibly rapid expansion most cities outdistance their planners
when there were any and grew into a maze of complexity
and confusion.
This is the profile of the city any city. To the left is the center of business.
Next is all of warehouses terminals
and old homes moderately priced apartments occupied the third the first zone has
single family homes.
When a metropolitan area grows the zones expand to take in more area.
Politically metropolitan areas often straddle state
and county boundaries included in these areas are many small local political units
cities villages townships.
There's overlapping duplications
and conflict in government functions of these various units as regards highways
schools water supply and taxes.
A city has problems increase with its size
because of this lack of discipline planning many of our large cities have paid a
terrible price high land values in crowded buildings
crowded street traffic jams
and costly delays in distributing good the general decline in warm.
Neighborly relationships
far too little chance for fresh air
and sunlight a higher cost per person for essential
services.
It is even become difficult for the average citizen to actively take part in his
local government.
But we've come a long way to an exciting era reasons which determined the original
location of the city's one so significant.
No longer applies today factories can be built almost anywhere since power can be
made available anywhere.
Instantaneous communication makes it possible for parts of the single company to be
hundreds of miles apart many plants once dependent on
railroad
and water transport are today free to build elsewhere sound business is
taking advantage of an increasingly Mobey labor force.
I'm moving to the low rent outskirts
and so are families which can afford houses in the country.
The trend is away from the congested center.
A difficult perplexing job bases today's city planners.
We must work within the limits of a basically rigid structure
sections of buildings must be blasted to make way for new avenues
and followed by new school new playground.
Low cost housing developments more efficient more healthy the plagued by such
problems as help housing and traffic the very size of a large city as are Devon
and
that agent in the abundance of special services a
variety of employment of today facilities
and a city with its large interested audiences encourages a rich cultural life come
to galleries lectures the city.
If we plan well.
Urban Americans will someday enjoy more of the advantages of a large city without
many of the penalties they now are forced to pay.