Planning from the past

Urban development has experienced a spectrum of change since its inception as a profession in the 19^th century. Technology, social demographics and globalisation opened up new ideas and concepts which saw much experimentation.

The industrial revolution introduced an influx of people in to the cities as the regional population migrated for work and, presumably, a better life. However, elevated congestion and the reduction in sanitation in residential areas quickly resulted in an explosion of disease and social dislocation. In attempt to pull the people out of the degrading situation, the parks movement was born. The creation of a natural urban setting was a monumental relief to the continuous establishment of factories and warehouses. There are no finer examples of this than Victoria Park in London, Central Park in New York and Bois de Boulogne in Paris. However, there was something more than parks required for improved public health and wellbeing.

Bois de Boulogne was born in the parks movement

Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City could be seen as the earliest attempt of integrating sustainability in to urban design. The plan envisaged a reintegration of urban and rural settings with small populations surrounded by farmland and countryside. The cities would be entirely self sufficient with public gardens, tree-lined boulevards, hospitals and parks. The city would also be connected to neighbouring cities via rail lines and canals. Although sound in theory, the plan was never fully realised on the scale Howard would have preferred. Today, it sounds almost utopian.

Welwyn Garden City 

City Beautiful was the next movement to come of age. The designs were focused on grand civic and neoclassical buildings. It would inspire awe amongst the population and be somewhat of an expression of capitalism. The strong axial arrangements and public buildings of the movement can be found in Canberra’s design; it is probably one of the best examples of the era.

Washington DC is a fine example of the City Beautiful movement

City Beautiful sparked somewhat of a ‘bigger is better’ mentality in terms of planning. Whether it is Frank Lloyd Wright’s sprawling city ideology or Le Corbusier’s city of towering skyscrapers, there was a relentless pursuit of form and efficiency. At some point we have lost the reason as to why we plan cities; for the people. As such, planning needs to be reduced back to a scale that does not leave the average citizen feeling dwarfed by the height of width of a city. This kind of thinking will perhaps be at the forefront of the next stage of ideologies. It will be the Post Modern age of urban planning.