Urban problems late 19th and early 20th centuries led to urban reforms. According to Jacobs and Appleyard most city-dwellers were long dealing with poor living conditions and suffering from acute health issues. Social inequality and injustice explain these problems since it allowed only a few to have access to a healthy environment. In addition to this economic issue, both rich and poor urban residents were affected by dehumanization. City people were no longer seen as citizens but as an industrial good trapped by a specialized and mass production utilitarian mindset. Large scale privatization led to loss of public life or extreme isolation like the ones behind steering wheels. The phenomenon “centrifugal fragmentation” also helped isolate social groups by defining and categorizing land use by income. Historic landmarks were destroyed and traditional values forgotten, and as a result, old and new urban generations developed a feeling of placelessness, that is, no belonging to surroundings. Urban planners, who were supposed to address these problems, oftentimes were rootless professionals - they did not come from the local community and did not learn how to appreciate idiosyncrasies.
These urban problems gave way to the renaissance of utopians. Pinder defines utopia as the “desire for a better way of being and living through imagining of a different city” (p. 230). His utopianism was a reaction to the “status quo” way of thinking and provided a vision of how urban life would be if it were driven by a fertile imagination. This approach also warned planners to consider traditional norms while building ideal spatial organizations.
Howard and Le Corbusier were two exponents of a heterodox way of thinking among land-use design-oriented urban planners. According to Jacobs, by analyzing the living conditions of the poor in London late 19th century, Howard aimed to halt growth and rebuild the countryside by establishing “the Garden City”. By separating industries from homes and allowing the deprived ones to spend time in connected controlled small towns, close to nature and surrounded by dynamic social, cultural, economic, and political linkages, Howard’s idea of “private outdoor space” would ultimately create self-sufficient and complex societies by reinforcing the positive aspects of cities – jobs and services – and the countryside – natural environment. Le Corbusier arose in the wake of Howard’s ideas and positively complemented the Anglo-American legacy. The French utopian and repository of the European tradition proposed in 1920 the creation of “la ville radieuse”. According to Hall and Tewdwr-Jones, Le Corbusier’s visions derived from the congestion in inner parts he identified in the 19th European large cities. Having this problem in mind, Le Corbusier proposed the paradox of solving this congestion by increasing vertical density especially in low-income public housing and office-buildings. The concentration of high structures densely populated would i) create more ground space, ii) equalize density over an urban sprawl and iii) improve transportation efficiency. Le Corbusier’s ideas, however, were heavily criticized by not taking into account social and physical contexts, in addition to creating an urban life disconnected from street life and being greatly focused on mobility and adaptability of buildings, interior design, and high-risings as pieces of art with little functionality and traditional appreciation.
Jacobs, Appleyard, and Friedmann were the prominent urban planners in the 20th century. These three planners made incremental changes to utopian planners by focusing less on design, equalizing density, and mobility and more on functionality, social network complexity, and cultural diversity. Jacobs and Appleyard, for instance, have advocated a planning process against orthodox methods of distinguishing areas for the poor and the rich. Instead of physical architectural design, the new approach to density should be on its implications on establishing i) intricate cities ii) close-grained diversity and iii) mutual economic and social support. Friedmann was also against creating monotonous artificial cities and thus proposed “Modular Cities” which are town-centered, self-governing agropolitan districts. Friedmann assumed that this zoning system would help raise civic standards in radial areas, avoid urban mass migration, and build complex societies.
Few lessons can be drawn from urban issues and their propositions in the last two centuries. For Jacobs and Appleyard, the goals for urban planning in this century are i) livability – comfortability for everyone ii) identity and control – belonging iii) access to opportunity, imagination, and joy where it is possible to meet new people, have fun, break from traditions, and enjoy an enlightening cultural experience iv) authenticity & meaning: open area for education and awareness v) community & public life: bring residents together vi) self-reliance: reduce dependence and vii) environment. In terms of physical designing, Jacobs and Appleyard support the following aspects for an urban life i) livable streets and neighborhoods by enforcing specific standards and requirements ii) minimum density of residential development and intensity of land use by improving proximity iii) integration of activities (living, working, and shopping) by creating public spaces that encourage local community identity iv) manmade environment that helps defining public spaces like walkable sideways to promote visual contact and tolerance and v) complex arrangements and relationships among small buildings and residents to improve health, safety, and efficiency.
Hall, P. "Urban and regional planning". Routledge, 2010
Jacobs, J. "The death and life of great cities". Cambridge, 1993
Pinder, D. "In defense of utopian urbanism". Geografiska Annaler, 2002
Jacobs, A. "Toward an urban design manifesto". JOurnal of the American Planning Association, 1987
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