Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-11-05
CITY CONTROL Of
RECREATION
ISURCED
Playground Expert Declares At
.aota Must Give Something for
Vices Taken From People.

Declaring that a city owes it to it's
Fl people to give them decent recrea-
lion under decent supervision, George
BeIlamy, head of the Hiram House
settlement, of Cleveland, and an ex-
9ar. Of the Playground and Recrea-
ran Association of America, who
n spoke before the Chamber of Com
n merce Tuesday afternoon on the need
If systematized and standardized
y recreation, outlined plan for At
n ana Wednesday morning.
Its adoption, he declared, would
materially lessen both adult and jul
Il yen.e crime, and if worked out to
lbs end would elevate the standard
n of citizenship and provide for the
i needed anti-toXin 70 vice.
I'm a nutshell, Mr. Bellamy's plan is
municipal control of all forms of
public recreation, this control to be
vested in a Public Recreation Com
mission One of the activities of this
commission also, he declared. should
.e To promote and encourage the use
If public buildings as recreation cen
tors
First of all, however" Mr. Bel
amy said, the city must find out
what it needs. 1t must have facts on
which to base the work, or it will
be useless and aimless. The first
step for Atlanta as well as all other
cities that desire to do the right thing
by its citizens would be to have ex-
perts make a complete recreational
Il survey of the city. Then you would
.sva in Ef,fr a ,s,Sg-
h mary Of the things you have and the
4 things you haven't; of the facilities
YOU have and of the facilities you
4 need, in short, the city would know
Just where it stands on the recrea-
ZION question.
Prepare for Future.
The next step should be the pas
sage Of an ordinance based on the
needs of the city as shown by the sur
yey. Great care should be taken in
the preparation of this ordinance
The future should be prepared for
but care should be taken that the
recreation system does not grow fast
er than the city.
This ordinance should provide for
The Public Recreation Commission to
have charge of the citys recreation.
Ia the hands of this commission the
recreatiOnal future of the city will
depend. In addition to having charge
Of the parks, etc, it should also have
charge Of commercial recreation. I
10 not mean by this that the work of
the commercial recreation bodies al
ready established should be sup
pressed. Instead, the commission
should aid these organizations to de-
Eelop and expand, and should en-
deavor to standardize them and get
Mem in shape to do their best work.
The commission should undertake
me enlargement of the city play
ground system; it should endeavor to
make the parks attractive; municipal
'.uhs should be organized; the city
should conduct athletic organizations,
ana there should be literary and de-
leisure time could be spent. Every
person should belong to a club where
Selsure time could be spent Every
public building should be used as a
recreation center and experts should
De piacet in charge Of the work, men
"no know and are capable of handling
inc cltys recreation business.
Give Something in Return.
II TINS plan, of which / have given
out a very brief outline, should be
ADOPTED by Atlanta and worked out
by experts, it would result in untold
GOOD. The whole idea of the recrea-
Ion movement can be summed up in
lAeSe words: To overcome evil with
5000, and drive out evil by the crea-
i've use of the leisure time of the
people
II you take away the saloons and
,ae dance halls and the dives give
ne people something better in their
lIaees; give them clean, wholesome
legreation and play and teach them
I'D mink decent thoughts and their
7ellons will be decent
Last year $650,000,000 was spent
I'D caring for the social wreckage in
me prisons and asylums of the United
r.ales. Ninety per cent Of this
NteeNage was caused by the demon
@uHIhS and perverted use Of leisure
Boys and girls grow up into vicious
'A0 criminal men and women be-
.1lNe they are thrown into the streets
"IlHout anything to do The average
~ gong to school, has $500 hours
. 'elSdre time year, and the aver
az" Nottingham has about 22SS a
sNaI he can devote to recreation.
N.'Ss they are given something de
20 do in those leisure moments
''sl VIII inevitably drift into the
I'hs and dives and dens Of vice"
''I. Bellamy's suggestion that rhe
~ OF Atlanta adopt the plan formu-
ecu ny the association was taken
p py the Chamber of Commerce al
' meeting at the Piedmont Hotel
IoHuaS and President Wilmer /
'o''e was authorized to appoint
y.lihIjtee to investigate and deter
."' whether funds for survey can
raised. In the event the survey is
.aue II is probable that the Cham
L OF Commerce will put its Shout
IS 10 the wheel and eHdeavor to
'IiE out the suggestions of Mr. Bel
BelIamy Plan Endorsed.
enthusiastic Endorsement was given
ne ldea Of municipal recreation 'for
U3hta President Moore, Robert f.
maddox, V. H. Kriegshaber and Man
ger Dan Carey, Of the park system
l'Dhe briefly, indorsing Mr. Bellamy's
nan ana pledging their personal sup
.''t TO the movement. Mr. Maddox
-s'Iared that if the business men Of
.le city expect Atlanta to grow they
.LusJ provide recreation for the work.
.Hs people, characterizing it as "A
numerical necessity.
Mr. Bellamy was accompanied to
>,.Iahta by DR.. Cyrus F.. Stimson Of
eW YORK, one Of the secretaries "
ae recreation Association. They left