As the world population continues to grow at alarming rates, a major question faces the planners of today and tomorrow. Where are these people going to live? A great place to start working on the answer is in our history. Many say we study history so that we can avoid repeating it. This time repetition may be the best possible action. Ebenezer Howard’s vision for cities of the future which he put forth in his book, “Garden Cities of Tomorrow”, may well hold the answer to our world’s inevitable population woes. His garden cities are described as:
The total development would have an area of about 6,000 acres. The urbanized area itself would have an area of about 1,000 acres and be laid out in a circle about 1.5 miles in diameter. A garden and a grouping of public buildings would constitute the core and would be accessible by radial boulevards. The core would be ringed by residential areas divided into neighborhoods by the boulevards The residential ring would, in turn, be ringed by commercial and industrial ring would be enclosed in a circular rail spur, which would connect the city to other garden cities and to the central city of the region. Around the urban area would be agricultural and institutional uses (Levy 48).
In this design, long commutes to work are a thing of the past. Citizens of the city are employed in the commercial and industrial ring which is either a short walk or short public transportation ride away from home. These garden cities are also very sustainable in that a large amount of the food they need is grown just outside the edge of the city. If more resources are needed, the rail which is connected to surrounding cities can be utilized. Successful examples of Howard’s work are Radburn, New Jersey (Levy 43) and Chandigarh, India (Levy 50). These communities continue to thrive today.
I believe now is the time to revert back to this way of thinking. With populations skyrocketing (mostly in developing countries), people are going to be searching for places to live. This is an opportunity to start from scratch and responsibly handle the demand for housing. By following Howard’s initial ideology, a flourishing network of self-sustaining cities can be constructed. It is places like Lagos, Nigeria and Mumbai, India where this type of smart growth is sorely needed. Without it, these growing cities are doomed to experience the same sprawl that has plagued countless U.S. cities.