Evening star., 1927-05-10

| "A certain small boy VINO had travel
ed much with his father and seen
many cities where building activities
were conspicuous, at last complained
and asked his daddy to please not go
to any more cities until they were
| finished. Little did the child under
stand that when a city is finished
| Ii is dead. Only Kish, the first city
| built after Noah's food. which scien-
| lists are just getting ready to un-
earth, is a perfect example of that
/ boys hope.
| In the meanwhile, there is in ses-
sion at Wardman Park Hotel the
nineteenth National Conference of
| City Planning, with an attendance of
some $50 delegates from all States in
the Union. This organization was
| formed at the meeting held here just
| 20 years ago, and since then has held
annual meetings in various cities. In
| that score of years, new profess
sion has developed, not alone in
| America. but in England and Europe.
where a similar renaissance began
about the same time, the profession
| of city planner.
| A new course in college curricula Is
urged by the organization, although,
| as yet, only Harvard has ever main
| tanned a regular course. and that is
restricted to graduates in architec-
| ture, landscape architecture and en-
| gineering, with Prof. John Nolen,
president of the organization, as the
| lecturer. 1t is now urged that all col
| leges should provide such course
| for the qualifying of city planners
and for the general training of city
| commissioners and architects.
x r Il
Assuredly this opens a new pFofes-
| sion which is not overcroWded. In
| fact. one wonders how any one could
enter such a learned profession and
set himself up as authority as to how
| to plan a city, or even q village. is
| not a city a product of evolution? Did
not the cows of the Pilgrim Fathers
plan the crooked streets of Boston!
| When d city begins to come into eX-
| istence, who can foresee whether IT
| is going to grow to J. 900 or 1000 900
population? Will a blueprint. made
| before the first cottage is built, lay
| out it's streets for a Greater New
York, locate it's public buildings, map
| it's parks and it's sewage system, or
| foresee the need of proper landing
| grounds for future air traffic? Only
| Tennyson can look into the future
| and see fleets of airshipS bringing
rich argosies TO cities yet unmade.
Yet a city planner must anticipate
| evolution. and plan for metropolitan
needs where now there is nothing
but sand and rock, or forest or pral-
rie. Who will pay such city pian-
ner. when no city yet exists accord
ing to his dream? 1t is new profes,
sion. requiring much training and
much nav per city-for 1t is long
time between cities.
Nevertheless, 20 years have marked
progress in creating ard securing rec
oenition for the new art. president
Nolen. in discussing this question last
evening in his annual address, said;
about 20 years ago, there were l30
cities of 10000 or more in the Unlted
States and there were 19.0oO.92l per-.
sons living in those cities. Today thefe
are 24S cities and 39,98l.1Q popula-
tion so that there has been an IN
crease of 113 cities (of 10000 or more)
and 2O,9301S4 population. The query
here, which we must consider later Is,
What influence has city planning had
upon the distribution of this in
creased urban population of over
&C, 900 900?
when we turn to city planning it
self. what do we find 90 years ago?
The answer is, Almost nothing With
the exception of the Mcmillan plan FOR
comprehensive park system for
Washington Q90D prepared by dls-
tinsuished group. Burnhams plan for
San Francisco Q9O5l and a few tenta-
tive and unofficial efforts. no compre-
hensive city plans, as we think pI
them today. had been prepared.
Moreover, there was no interest IN
city Manning among the people gener-
slly. except so far as it was beginning
to EXPRESS itself in wider discussion
of the city beautiful in connection
with civic centers and parks and play
grounds" .4
Since then. the records show that
157 cities, ranging in population from
. 500 m to more than 1000 900, have
been scientifically planned. Many
have adopted revised plans, remodel !
ing the cities as they then stood, but
this is very much more costly than is
forehandedness. For example, the
delegate from Los Angeles, Mr.. Cor
don Whitnall. director of the city pan
Commission, told of cutting one 1O-mlle
street through the city at a cost OF
million dollars mile. and then he de
scribed plans for future development
which will save future taxpayers more
than 100000, 900. Within the last