CHAPTER XL TOWN PLANNING By JESSE CLYDE NICHOLS 1 In the last decade there has developed throughout our country a group of men known as "Town Planners," representing a new profession, devoted not only to improving the living conditions in our cities and towns, but to stabilizing urban values and to rendering conditions more desirable from the industrial, commercial, and residential point of view. American cities were not designed for the great populations that some of them have, or for the tremendous traffic that crowds their streets. The street plan is too often of the checkerboard pattern, with uniform widths of streets and lengths of blocks. The blocks are often too long and the streets too narrow to be suited to the function of the street. This standardized street plan is one of the greatest defects in the layout of cities and towns. It was adopted when the city was small and is entirely unsuited to meet the burden put upon it by modern traffic. We are told by traffic engineers that traffic increases as the square of the population. When 1 Jesse Clyde Nichols, Kansas City, Mo., President of The Country Club District of that City is a recognized authority on all matters pertaining to the appraisal of residential development and city building. The Country Club District is a model for many other subdivisions, in America. Mr. Nichols obtained his early training at the University of Kansas, where he obtained his A.B. degree, in 1902. He received the same degree from Harvard, one year later. He is a member of the American City Planning Conference, the National Association of Real Estate Boards, Vice-President of The American Civic Association, he is President of National Conference of Subdividers. Among his best known writings are: The Best Method of Handling Residence Property and Creating Residence Neighbhorhoods by Planning. a city or town becomes four times as large as it is today, its traffic problem will be sixteen times as great. This ratio is perhaps accelerated by the increased size or weight of the transportation units and the marvelous increase in their number. Waste Due to Haphazard Use of Land within Cities and Towns. Many American cities have great areas of vacant land which are not increasing in value as rapidly as the carrying charges. They have also blighted sections, worth a mere fraction of their former value. Retail business centers shift, causing an immense loss of value in the abandoned section and rendering unsuitable the highest valued real estate in the city. Good residential sections are everywhere being injured and frequently ruined by injurious encroachments. There is a growing fire or conflagration hazard from the unregulated mingling of business with residences. These conditions and many others, besides the damaging effect on values, lay a heavy toll on the movement of trade within our cities. It has been said upon reliable authority that a loss exceeding a billion dollars is suffered annually in our American cities as a result of the evils of unplanned growth. Appreciation of the Value of Town Planning.—The evils which have been described are no longer merely talking points, and town planning as a remedy is no longer a mere theory or the dream of reformers. In over 150 cities, large and small, citizens have generally awakened from self-complacency and lethargy and have insisted on the appointment of planning commissions or planning boards, whose job is to secure the development of the city in accordance with a carefully considered plan. In at least 20 states legislation has been passed which gives a definite function to the planning agency. In addition to this activity in city plan legislation and in city plan administration, one special field of city planning, namely, zoning, has caught the attention of city officials all over the country, and today zoning ordinances have been passed in 70 cities and are being prepared in as many more. SCOPE OF TOWN PLANNING Efficient town planning involves the same principles applied to the development of a town as govern any successful industrial enterprise. The town plan must be based on a careful survey of those elements which make up the physical and social community. It must result in a program for future growth so logical and meritorious that it will be an incentive at every step of the city's or town's development-above all, it must stir the imagination of the people. From actual experience and the definite programs of many city and town planning commissions in the United States we can get the best picture of town planning procedure. We assume, first of all, that there is state legislation which will give the city or town planning commission some authority; and we assume, secondly, that the town planning commission will be made up of men who have a real interest in this important public service and can give liberally of their time in the many conferences that the work of a planning commission involves. The first task is to get the older administrative boards of the city or town to appreciate clearly the function of the planning commission. It is not to take away any of the functions of the older boards. They are essentially executive; a planning commission is essentially a program-making and a coordinating body. When this principle is thoroughly understood by the older boards, it has been found that they are eager to discuss their problems with the planning commission, and thus a basis for harmonizing the town's development is secured. The planning commission will then proceed to a survey of the needs of the town. Sometimes this can readily be done by home talent-the city engineer or the engineer of the Board of Public Works, or a group of engineers and architects with a thorough knowledge of the town. Several smaller towns are finding that it is good business to employ, on an annual retainer basis, consulting specialists to check up the survey. More often the planning commission has employed a planning specialist to conduct the survey. The survey reveals the needs and is a basis for a city plan or planning program. Here it should be again stated that a plan is only a guide for the future. It does not mean that it should be adopted, with definite dates for its accomplishment. It means merely that whenever any physical improvement is contemplated, it should be examined to see how it fits into the town planning program or the program as amended. Zoning. In almost every city and town two elements of city planning stand out as of prime importance: first, the street system; second, zoning. These two elements go together. It is poor town planning to adopt a zoning ordinance without careful consideration of the street system. Zoning is essentially the application of common sense and fairness in the regulation of the use of private property. It is placing the public welfare above individual and selfish rights. It recognizes the need of using land in different sections of the city for different purposes. It protects the owner, for instance, of a residence from unreasonable injury through the different and harmful use of adjoining property. It reduces fire and conflagration hazards by the segregation of hazardous industries. It substitutes for the whim or desire of the individual owner a higher standard of development from which every piece of property derives a greater gain. It sets up reasonable regulation, based on the best experience, for height, use, and area of buildings, coordinating all the uses of property, grouping harmonious uses, and providing for their future expansion. It follows the same method which any business institution uses in the physical arrangement of its plant and the handling of its raw and finished material, so that there will be coordination between all departments. One of its great results is so stabilizing real estate values that there is less depreciation of property and a more even revenue from taxation. It has so appealed to the town authorities that it has put in the background the other elements of city planning, and this is a result which is to be deplored. Street System.-The street system is the framework of any city plan. The determination of the main traffic ways. and secondary streets is essential before there can be sound zoning and a logical distribution of parks and playgrounds, The town public schools, and other municipal buildings. planner bases his program for main thoroughfares and secondary streets on traffic counts and on an analysis of the objective points of traffic and on changing sources of traffic. He studies the existing street layout and street function just as carefully as the sewer or water engineer studies the requirements of the sewer or water mains. Diversion of unessential traffic from certain streets, the creation of circumferential or diagonal highways, the opening of short cuts, the separation of different kinds of traffic, and many other items are as important as the widening of the streets themselves. The future centers of a population are anticipated by careful studies of the growth and trends of population, and the increasing number of vehicles approaching downtown centers, public parks and all other important objective points are allowed for. Business traffic is expedited by providing streets which by easy grade will reduce the cost of moving goods. Where Foresight Saves Future Expense. This foresight does not necessarily cause great expense to the present generation, but prevents doing things which will cause much trouble and great expense to the next generation. The establishment of a building line on a street ultimately destined to be a broad highway may cause the property owner of today no expense and yet may save millions upon that one street alone in caring for the traffic needs of the future. Problems in Residence Districts. In laying out new residential districts it has been found that to reduce the length. of blocks and increase the number of side streets has met many of the problems of automobile congestion. On the other hand, the development of residential property may be encouraged and made permanent on certain minor streets by the provision of narrower paving and walks and grades that discourage through traffic. These purely residence streets are, and should be, of course, well related to the main boulevards, business streets, and trafficways of ample width and easy grades. These residence streets should be so planned as to eliminate alleys, follow the contour of the land, be fitted to the lots and blocks, afford sites of interesting shapes, and permit indi |