Jane Jacobs vs Robert Moses: Urban Fight of the Century

Summary

The video script narrates the influential battle between urban activist Jane Jacobs and city planner Robert Moses over the future of New York City in the 20th century. Jacobs, armed with her book 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities,' led a grassroots movement to prevent the construction of the Lower Manhattan Expressway, which threatened to displace thousands and destroy historic neighborhoods. Her fight symbolizes a broader struggle for the soul of cities, advocating for vibrant, interconnected urban spaces over automobile-centric development.

Takeaways

• 🏙️ The script tells the story of Jane Jacobs, an influential urban theorist, and her battle against Robert Moses, a powerful urban planner known for his transformative projects in New York City.
• 🛤️ Robert Moses was responsible for numerous infrastructure projects, including parkways, expressways, bridges, and tunnels, that significantly changed the landscape of New York City and Long Island.
• 🚏 In the early 1960s, Moses aimed to build a super highway through lower Manhattan, which would have displaced thousands and destroyed historic structures, but faced opposition led by Jane Jacobs.
• 📚 Jane Jacobs published 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities,' a book that criticized top-down urban planning and advocated for a bottom-up approach that valued existing communities and street life.
• 🌟 Jacobs emphasized the importance of mixed-use neighborhoods, small-scale buildings, and 'eyes on the street' for safety and community, challenging the prevailing orthodoxies of urban renewal.
• 🛂 Jacobs and her fellow activists organized rallies, demonstrations, and public hearings to fight against the Lower Manhattan Expressway and other Moses projects that threatened their neighborhoods.
• 💪 The community's resistance, led by Jacobs, was successful in halting the Lower Manhattan Expressway, marking a significant victory for community-based urban planning over large-scale, top-down projects.
• 🏛️ The script highlights the establishment of the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965, which helped protect historic buildings and districts from demolition, influenced by Jacobs' advocacy.
• 🚶‍♀️ Jacobs' perspective valued the lived experience of city dwellers, the importance of public spaces, and the organic development of cities, as opposed to Moses' focus on infrastructure and modernization.
• 🔄 The narrative contrasts the 'new is better than old' mentality of the time with Jacobs' appreciation for historical continuity and the texture of life in cities, advocating for a sensitivity to history in urban planning.
• 🌱 The script suggests that Jacobs' ideas have enduring relevance, influencing urban planning and the recognition of the importance of community engagement and historical preservation in city development.

Q & A

Who is Jane Jacobs and why is she considered an urban legend?

Jane Jacobs was an influential urban theorist and author, best known for her book 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities.' She is considered an urban legend because of her significant impact on urban planning and her battle against the urban renewal projects led by Robert Moses, advocating for the preservation of neighborhood vitality and historic structures.

What was the role of Robert Moses in New York City's transformation during the 20th century?

Robert Moses was a powerful public works official who, for 50 years, was responsible for the construction of hundreds of miles of parkways, expressways, bridges, and tunnels in New York City and Long Island. His projects transformed the city but also led to the destruction of many historic neighborhoods.

What was the significance of the Lower Manhattan Expressway project proposed by Robert Moses?

The Lower Manhattan Expressway project was significant because it aimed to drive an eight-lane elevated highway straight across the heart of lower Manhattan, which would have destroyed thousands of historic structures and displaced nearly 10,000 residents. The project became a battleground for the future of urban planning and the preservation of neighborhoods.

How did Jane Jacobs' book 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities' influence the urban planning debate?

Jane Jacobs' book provided a counter-narrative to the prevailing urban planning orthodoxies of the time. It emphasized the importance of neighborhood vitality, the role of small businesses, and the need for 'eyes on the street' for safety and community. It inspired residents to fight against destructive urban renewal projects.

What was the outcome of the battle between Jane Jacobs and Robert Moses over the Lower Manhattan Expressway?

Jane Jacobs and her allies successfully opposed the Lower Manhattan Expressway, leading to the project's cancellation. This marked a significant victory for community activism and the preservation of urban neighborhoods over large-scale urban renewal projects.

What was the impact of the Lower Manhattan Expressway battle on New York City's urban development?

The battle led to a reevaluation of urban development priorities in New York City, emphasizing the importance of preserving historic neighborhoods and public spaces over large-scale infrastructure projects that could disrupt community life.

What is the significance of the establishment of the Landmarks Preservation Commission in New York City?

The Landmarks Preservation Commission, established in 1965, was significant because it provided a legal framework for the protection of historic buildings and districts in New York City, preventing their destruction by urban renewal projects.

How did Jane Jacobs' activism extend beyond writing to include direct community involvement?

Jane Jacobs was actively involved in community organizing, leading rallies, demonstrations, and public hearings to fight against urban renewal projects that threatened neighborhoods. She was even arrested for her activism, which further galvanized public support.

What were the key principles of Jane Jacobs' approach to urban planning?

Jane Jacobs advocated for an approach to urban planning that emphasized the importance of mixed uses, small-scale buildings, and a diversity of spaces that fostered community interaction. She believed in the 'intricate ballet' of street life and the need for 'eyes on the street' for safety and community engagement.

How did Jane Jacobs' views on urban planning differ from those of Robert Moses?

While Robert Moses focused on large-scale infrastructure projects to modernize the city, Jane Jacobs emphasized the importance of preserving the existing urban fabric, arguing that new developments should complement rather than replace the old, and that the vitality of neighborhoods was essential to the city's health.

What is the legacy of Jane Jacobs' fight against the Lower Manhattan Expressway?

The legacy of Jane Jacobs' fight is the affirmation of the value of community involvement in urban planning and the recognition that large-scale infrastructure projects can have detrimental effects on neighborhoods and city life. It also marked a turning point in the approach to urban development, leading to more community-oriented and preservation-minded policies.

Outlines

00:00

🏙️ The Battle for Urban Preservation

This paragraph introduces the narrative of Jane Jacobs' fight against Robert Moses' urban development plans in New York City during the 20th century. Jacobs, an urban theorist, is depicted as a hero who challenged Moses, a powerful figure in urban planning known for his extensive construction projects. The paragraph sets the stage for a David and Goliath story, highlighting the influence of Moses and the resistance led by Jacobs, as documented in a PBS series by Ric Burns. The focus is on the proposed Lower Manhattan Expressway that threatened to destroy historic neighborhoods, and how Jacobs' activism and her book, 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities,' became pivotal in shaping urban planning discussions.

05:01

🌿 The Vision of Urban Vitality

This paragraph delves into Jane Jacobs' perspective on urban planning and the importance of community and neighborhood harmony. It contrasts her views with the destructive urban renewal projects of the post-World War II era, which she argued led to the loss of vital urban economies and community spirit. Jacobs advocated for the preservation of public spaces and the acknowledgment of the complex, organic order of city life. The paragraph also touches on the negative impacts of urban renewal, such as the rise in crime and the loss of community cohesion, and how Jacobs' ideas resonated with the public, influencing a shift in urban planning philosophy.

10:01

🚦 The Fight Against Expressway Expansion

The third paragraph details the active resistance led by Jane Jacobs and her allies against Robert Moses' plans for the Lower Manhattan Expressway. It describes the community's efforts in organizing rallies, demonstrations, and public hearings to challenge the prevailing automobile-centric and urban renewal ideologies. The paragraph highlights Jacobs' role as an activist, not just a writer, and the formation of unlikely coalitions among various groups to protect their neighborhoods. The narrative culminates in a crucial meeting where the board of estimate is urged to reject the expressway proposal, emphasizing the importance of public opinion and the right to one's environment.

15:02

🎉 Victory Against the Lower Manhattan Expressway

This paragraph celebrates the successful opposition against the Lower Manhattan Expressway, marking a significant victory for Jacobs and her supporters. It recounts the pivotal meeting on December 11, 1962, where the board of estimate voted against the expressway, influenced by the powerful opposition led by Jacobs. The paragraph conveys the relief and joy of the community, viewing the decision as a Christmas present and a reprieve from a long-standing threat. It also reflects on the broader implications of the victory for the future of New York City and the culture of cities, emphasizing the triumph of public space and the city block over modernization at any cost.

20:04

🏛️ The Legacy of Preservation and History

The fifth paragraph discusses the lasting impact of Jacobs' fight on urban planning and the appreciation for historical preservation in cities. It highlights the establishment of the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965, which saved numerous buildings and districts from demolition, reflecting a shift in values towards recognizing the importance of history and community in urban environments. The paragraph also contrasts the approach of Robert Moses, who viewed the city primarily as a transportation problem, with Jacobs' holistic view of cities as living, interconnected communities. It suggests that New York's unique character, including its ability to support a car-free lifestyle, is partly due to the preservation of its neighborhoods and public spaces.

25:04

💡 Creativity, Innovation, and the Future of Cities

In the final paragraph, the conversation with Jane Jacobs shifts towards the importance of creativity and innovation in urban development. Jacobs emphasizes the value of human capital and the need for new ideas to improve city living. She expresses her preference for writing and educating over engaging in political fights, although she acknowledges the necessity of opposing harmful development projects. The paragraph concludes with a reflection on Jacobs' enduring legacy and her commitment to common sense and practical solutions in urban planning, as well as a mention of resources for further exploration of her work and related topics.

Keywords

💡Jane Jacobs

Jane Jacobs was an influential urban theorist and author, best known for her book 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities.' She is a central figure in the video, celebrated for her battle against urban planner Robert Moses' plans to construct expressways through Manhattan. Jacobs advocated for a city built by and for people, not traffic, emphasizing the importance of vibrant streets, mixed-use neighborhoods, and preservation of historic structures.

💡Robert Moses

Robert Moses was a powerful urban planner in New York during the 20th century, known for his large-scale public works projects. In the video, he is depicted as a polarizing figure who sought to transform New York with massive infrastructure projects, often at the expense of existing communities and historic areas. His plans for expressways through Manhattan were a key point of conflict with Jane Jacobs and her supporters.

💡Urban Renewal

Urban Renewal refers to the large-scale redevelopment projects that took place in American cities during the mid-20th century, often resulting in the demolition of older neighborhoods. In the video, it is portrayed as a process that tore the heart out of communities under the guise of progress, with Jane Jacobs challenging its underlying assumptions and advocating for a more people-centric approach to city planning.

💡Expressway

An expressway is a wide, high-speed road designed for fast vehicular traffic. In the context of the video, expressways symbolize the dominance of automobile-centric planning over the needs of urban residents. The proposed Lower Manhattan Expressway is a focal point of the conflict between Jacobs' vision of a human-scaled city and Moses' infrastructure-focused approach.

💡Community Activism

Community Activism is the act of individuals and groups working collectively to address and bring about social change. The video highlights the role of community activism in fighting against Robert Moses' plans, with Jane Jacobs and her allies organizing rallies, demonstrations, and public hearings to protect their neighborhoods from destructive urban renewal projects.

💡Urban Planning

Urban Planning is the process of designing and shaping the urban environment to meet the needs of current and future populations. The video discusses the evolution of urban planning ideologies, contrasting the top-down, automobile-focused approach of Robert Moses with Jane Jacobs' bottom-up, people-oriented perspective that values the complexity and vitality of city life.

💡Landmarks Preservation Commission

The Landmarks Preservation Commission is an agency responsible for protecting historically and aesthetically significant buildings and sites. The video mentions the establishment of this commission in New York as a direct result of the activism led by Jane Jacobs, which helped to save numerous neighborhoods and buildings from demolition.

💡Eyes on the Street

The concept of 'Eyes on the Street' refers to the idea that active and engaged residents contribute to the safety and vitality of urban spaces. Jane Jacobs emphasized this concept in her work, arguing that a community's watchful presence helps maintain social order and fosters a sense of belonging, as opposed to the impersonal nature of large-scale urban projects.

💡Public Space

Public Space is any area or location accessible to all members of the public. The video underscores the importance of preserving and valuing public spaces as integral to the urban fabric, contrasting the impersonal nature of expressways with the lively, diverse, and interconnected spaces that Jacobs advocated for.

💡Urban Design

Urban Design is the field of architecture and design concerned with creating and shaping urban environments. The video discusses the importance of urban design in creating cities that are functional, aesthetically pleasing, and responsive to the needs of their inhabitants, highlighting Jane Jacobs' influential ideas on how cities should be designed for people.

💡Cultural Continuum

Cultural Continuum refers to the ongoing connection and development of a culture or society over time. In the video, Jane Jacobs speaks to the importance of maintaining a cultural continuum in cities, arguing that the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods provides a sense of history and belonging, contributing to the richness of urban life.

Highlights

Vince Graham introduces the story of Jane Jacobs' battle against Robert Moses, a public works mastermind who transformed New York City.

The eight-part PBS series by Rick Burns on New York is recommended for its coverage of urbanism in the 20th century.

In the early 1960s, Robert Moses aimed to build a superhighway through the heart of Manhattan, affecting thousands of residents.

Jane Jacobs, a journalist and author of 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities,' led the opposition against Moses' plans.

Jacobs' book challenged the prevailing urban planning orthodoxies of the post-WWII era, advocating for the preservation of neighborhoods.

Jacobs emphasized the importance of urban economies and the interdependent functions within cities, threatened by the dominance of automobiles.

Her vision promoted integrated communities, walkability, and the vitality of public spaces over large-scale urban renewal projects.

The fight against the Lower Manhattan Expressway united diverse groups, showcasing the power of collective action.

Jacobs' activism included public demonstrations and challenging the automobile-centric culture of urban renewal.

The board of estimate's rejection of the Lower Manhattan Expressway marked a significant victory for Jacobs and community activists.

The triumph highlighted the importance of public opinion and the rights of residents in shaping urban environments.

The establishment of the landmarks preservation commission in 1965 was a legislative response to the preservationist movement.

Jacobs' perspective on the value of historical continuity and the built environment's impact on community life.

The contrast between Robert Moses' vision of modernization and Jacobs' emphasis on community and historical preservation.

Jacobs' approach to urban issues as a scientific mind, valuing observation and experiment over abstract theories.

Her commitment to writing and educating as her primary work, with activism being a response to direct threats to her community.

The enduring legacy of Jane Jacobs' ideas and their influence on urban planning and community engagement.

Transcripts

hi Vince Graham here with a picture of

me standing in front of the home of one

of my heroes the late Jane Jacobs Jane

Jacobs is an urban legend and this is

the story of her battle with Robert

Moses the polarizing Public Work Zar of

New York who for 50 years in the 20th

century transformed the city in Long

Island and in the process influenced a

generation of Engineers Architects and

urban planners it's an inspiring David

and Goliath story As Told by Master

documentarian Rick Burns and His

Brilliant PB S series on New York this

eight-part series which is available on

YouTube is wonderful I'd particularly

like to recommend Parts six and seven

for those interested in cities and Urban

Design because it covers the period of

New York in the 20th century which is

essentially the story of urbanism in

20th century America the story picks up

about 50 years ago in the early

1960s I hope you

enjoy hundreds of miles of Parkways and

expressways and dozens of bridges and

tunnels now connected the city to the

Suburban reaches of Long Island and

Beyond hundreds more had been driven

through the outer Burrows themselves

weaving together as Moses himself

declared the loose strands and frayed

edges of the Metropolitan arterial

tapestry but in all the frenzy of

construction the master builder had

never been able to penetrate the heart

of Manhattan itself with a super highway

and in 1961 he resolved to do something

about it fixing in his sights a

low-lying area of lower Manhattan

stretching from Chinatown in the South

up through the Wayward lanes and ancient

side streets of Greenwich

[Music]

Village we simply repeat that cities are

created by and for

traffic a City without traffic is a

ghost

town the area between Canal Street and

Third Street a strip 3/4 of a mile wide

is the the most depressed area in lower

Manhattan and one of the worst if not

the worst slums in the entire

city Robert

[Music]

Moses condemning the West Village as a

slum and the old cast iron District to

the South as an obstacle to the free

flow of

traffic by

1961 he had set in motion two immense

Federal

initiatives a vast urban renewal project

that would level 14 and tire blocks

along Hudson Street in the

village and an eight Lane elevated

Highway one of his most cherished dreams

that would drive straight across the

heart of lower Manhattan from the East

River to the Hudson destroying thousands

of historic structures and displacing

nearly 10,000 residents and

workers it's difficult to even make

anyone understand what would have

happened he would have

bulldozed a swath about 225 ft wine

right across Lower Manhattan today

that's the kin District of

Soho what was the vision what was the

aims of a man who would decide for the

sake of the automobile to cut a swath

across a city across a beautiful vibrant

bustling part of the

city and you know Robert Moses wanted to

build three expressways across New York

City not just the low Manhattan he had a

mid Manhattan Expressway which would

have run across 30th Street in the air

and he wanted to build one again at

ground level at 125th Street in Opera

Manhattan

expresso for decades nothing had stopped

the Juggernaut of road building or

slowed the Rampage of urban renewal

which in the name of rebuilding the city

had torn the heart out of one Community

after

another but this time things would turn

out differently

determined to save Manhattan from the

devastation that had blighted the Bronx

residents of the village banded together

and resolved to fight selecting as their

leader a 45-year-old journalist and

working mother from Hudson Street who

had that very year published a

groundbreaking book about the mistakes

of urban

planning her name was Jane Jacobs the

book was called the death and life of

Great American cities and New York would

never be the same again

and it started out by saying something

like this is an attack on City Planning

and then she went through the Litany of

what the cor and other ideologues had

imagined what a city should be as

opposed to what a city really

was Jane Jacobs was taking on the

orthodoxies of planning that had

prevailed in the postor War II period

the ideas of lobier and the bow house

and and other planners who thought that

the city needed to be renewed

there were areas that that that that

needed help but the kind of help that

she saw that they needed was uh the

assistance to allow people to continue

living in their Brownstones in the

neighborhoods where they had a harmony

with their neighbors and the destruction

of those neighborhoods is one of the

great tragedies of of post World War II

New

York she understood that Urban economies

are different she understood the sort of

beehive thousand different

interdependent functions nature of urban

economies and that's what we lose when

we surrender the street to the

automobile when people don't want to be

on the street anymore when they reshape

their lives in a way that they're always

in privatized space rather than sharing

public space Jan Jacobs knew 35 years

ago that that was a recipe for the

destruction of what makes cities

wonderful

look what they have

built lowincome projects that become

worst centers of delinquency and

vandalism than the slums they were

supposed to

replace promenades that go from no place

to nowhere and have no

promenaders expressways that eviscerate

great

cities this is not the rebuilding of

cities

this is the sacking of

cities Jan

Jacobs she hit the nerve at the right

moment with that book it was the right

book at exactly the right moment because

she made people see particulars She Made

Them See the

street this had been a period of urban

renewal when everything was on a model

on a big PL or a drawing with overlays

and she made people look at the street

and what was there she spoke about the

eyes on the street the smaller buildings

where people looked out and watched

their neighbors she spoke about the

small stores the mom and pop stores all

the things that urban renewal Not only

was destroying but didn't acknowledge

existed she basically said that from her

house at 555 Hudson Street in the West

Village from the sidewalk of her block

you could observe what a whole city was

like but it returned the discussion of

what urbanism should be about what New

York should be about from big land plan

games to individuals shops streets cars

crosswalks networks of people people

rich and poor living more closely

together less concerned with the

elevator to the 35th floor and more

concerned with the life and the

five-story walk up

under the seeming disorder of the old

city wherever the old city is working

successfully is a marvelous order for

maintaining the safety of the streets

and the freedom of the

city it is a complex

order its Essence is the intricacy of

sidewalk use bringing with it a constant

succession of eyes

this order is composed of movement and

change and we may liken it to the

dance not to a simple-minded Precision

Dance but to an intricate ballet in

which the individual dancers and

ensembles all have distinctive Parts

which miraculously reinforce each

other and compose an orderly whole

Jane

Jacobs her writing enabled people to

imagine her block but also enabled

people to see to see other blocks she

created maybe without intending to do it

a kind of empathy and opened up

possibilities for empathy as a political

force in the' 60s so that once people

could imagine how other people lived

even if they didn't concretely know they

could help them they could work for them

they could work together

when she comes out with her book in

1961 it's it's not just that it's

brilliantly written it's py it's punchy

it's down to earth uh uh you know it's

enjoyable it's entertaining it's mind

capturing it's not just that it's that

what she is doing is providing a

counternarrative a counter argument a

counter vision of what the city is but

it's a vision that says you don't want

to break out manufacturing and send it

off somewhere else you don't want to

fact send the citizens off to the

suburbs you what you want to have is an

integrated Community the way it used to

be in essence but you want to have

people in a position to walk to work you

want small scale buildings you want

people to be able to watch the streets I

mean crime to some extent is beginning

to explode in the city in the ' 50s and

a lot of it is you know there certainly

is the pathology of drugs and such but

it is also from shattered communities

that have been renewed and removed and

highweed out and are in turmoil and are

about you know in the 60s to really

explode and not just here again but all

across the

country armed with a philosophy capable

of countering those in power Jacobs and

her colleagues threw themselves into the

fight holding rallies staging

demonstrations and attacking in public

hearings and in print the underlying

assumptions behind the culture of the

automobile and of urban

renewal and also you know Jacobs is an

activist she doesn't just simply write

about this stuff but then she's out in

the streets she's demonstrating they're

trying to block the Lower Manhattan

Expressway they're trying to stop the

plan to run roadways through Washington

Square they're counter planning they're

planning a West Village building project

which is based on

[Music]

Rehabilitation as he had in the Bronx

Robert Moses fought them every step of

the way marshalling every weapon at his

command to blunt the opposition

those personally

affected adversely or he thinks he is he

going to be opposed to you don't want it

B he doesn't want it done at all or he

wants it done somewhere else want moved

away now he may be wrong in more than

half the case or 3/4 of the case he's

wrong from his own point of view what do

you mean by that I mean by that that he

doesn't know what's in his own

interest he isn't smart enough to

visualize what you're going to do once

you build the thing he comes around and

he tells you he was always for it has

that happened to you all the time all

the

time for decades Robert Moses had simply

ridden Ru Shad over all those who

disagreed with him brutally negating the

power of votes Jane Jacobs charged with

the power of

money but this time he had completely

misjudged the strength of the opposition

rising up from the streets of Greenwich

Village which had been the center of

political dis sent in the city since the

days of the Triangle shirt waste factory

fire and

before I think it maybe couldn't have

happened anywhere else the lower e side

is different the village is different it

has a history there were very

experienced organizers we were not

Johnny come

L's we not only knew how to organize we

not only knew how to get publicity we

not only knew how to mobilize the troops

but we knew how to form

coalitions mafiosi radical Jews Factory

owners Chinese Merchants people who

ordinarily never had anything to say to

each other people who ordinarily hated

each other came together to stop

this they discovered that different

kinds of people could work together and

really make a difference and generate a

kind of power that neither of them by

themselves could ever have

imagined they would call A meeting and

there would be three times as many

people as anybody expected they'd have

to find a new Hall uh and there was a

particular thrill in this at the end of

the ' 50s and the start of the 60s that

we might be able to really make a

difference and that there was a power

that was even greater than the power of

cars power of

people at the head of the unlikely

Coalition was Jane Jacobs herself

frustrated at one public hearing she and

her colleagues tore up the St R's report

then declared that since there was no

official record of the hearing there had

been no

hearing she was arrested and charged

with Riot inciting to Riot criminal

mischief and obstructing public

administration but public support for

her actions only grew Mr Moses says that

the expressway must go through

regardless of who stands in the way do

you agree with that absolutely not if

this Expressway goes through it will

absolutely be catastrophic this will set

a pattern no doubt there that will be

followed there in other parts of the

city and if he has his way he'll

crisscross the city north south east and

west bisected triced Every Which Way

with expressways expressways to Mr Moses

are evidently more important than people

the evidence of the need of that thing

is overwhelming from the point of view

of engineering and

traffic that's all that matters we're in

the end

yes congestion gets bad enough

have to have

it meantime what

happens the salvio doesn't want it so

[Music]

what the battle over the Lower Manhattan

Expressway came to a crucial climax on

the night of December 11th

1962 at a tense crowded meeting of the

board of estimate on the second floor of

City Hall

except for one old man ablan Lewis

delelio declared I've been unable to

find anyone of technical competence who

was for this so-called

Expressway and this old man is a

cantankerous stubborn old man who has

done many things which may have in their

time been good for New York

City but I think that the time has come

for the stubborn old man to realize that

too many of his dreams turn out to be

nightmares for the city

and this board must realize that if it

does not kill this stupid example of bad

City Planning that the stench of it will

haunt them and this great City for many

years to

[Music]

come Jane Jacobs led the fight against

that Expressway that was Moses's last he

had many last teras but that really did

it every major politician Lindsay cotch

then a congressman was in it the debates

were all over the Press nationally and

internationally and somehow the fate of

what an inner city historic but still

very modern city would be was being

decided on whether these super projects

whether clearance for housing or foreign

Expressway could go forward in um an

existing City or whether the people who

lived there had rights to their own

environment in the end Jacobs and her

allies

prevailed Board of estimate in an

executive session

today voted unanimously to turn down the

proposal for a lower Manhattan express

the board

[Music]

pleas I wonder how David felt when he

bested Goliath that's the way we felt we

felt we beat Robert Moses you know sir

you look fairly relieved too you lived

right in the path of the proposed on

Groom Street so this is a reprieve from

a long time sentence isn't it it is yes

it was the greatest thing the mayor ever

did for the people in that neighborhood

because everybody was worried of that

and everybody was getting sick over it

so when they hear this news this will be

the best news that they ever heard for

Christmas this will act as a Christmas

present for the people on Broom Street

would you say that uh the result

was in this this case a Triumph of

public opinion against Bob Moses no no

there hasn't been any Triumph for

anybody

[Music]

yet Robert Moses always felt that he was

a tremendous failure in Manhattan that

he couldn't communicate his vision to

people

he built highways around the edges but

he could never get through the center

people just wouldn't buy it they stayed

attached to their streets to their

grungy houses to their crummy

neighborhoods and kept them from doing

this they abstained from the flow they

didn't want to be part of the

flow one result of this is that

Manhattan is one of the very few parts

of America where you can live a whole

life without a car and where your daily

life can depend on the street and on

interacting with other people and on

seeing what's going to happen in ways

that you don't

plan and in that Way New York is

different from I think probably every

other American city it may be the only

American City without an expressway

going through the center of town and

Moses felt extremely frustrated and

mortified by this but he just couldn't

do it the community protests were too

great it was a crucial turning point in

the life of New York and in the culture

of cities

everywhere with their stud running

Victory Jacobs and her allies had

reasserted the value of the city block

and by extension that of urban public

space itself challenging the most basic

assumptions upon which New York had

proceeded since the dawn of the Modern

Age that the new was always better than

the

[Music]

old and there's a sensitivity to history

which is also a new dimension to this I

mean you got to understand that since

the 20s it's been modern modern modern

and modern means dump the past break

with the past think new think Art Deco

think streamline think projectile think

you know tear down the old stuff not

just because well there may be you know

constraint on our ability to make

profits but because it's old because the

new is intrinsically superior to the

old but Jacob says wait a minute part of

the texture of life in a city is that

people are not just connected to each

other on the street by virtue of being

neighbors but they're connected in

time there's some sense in the buildings

around you that you know remain that

give you a sense of being part of a

Continuum you know the history isn't

dead it's not something which has been

transcended today is not the first day

of the rest of your life people are

beings in time and they need to be uh

surrounded not entirely but you know to

some extent by the Legacy the built

environment of the

past 3 years later Jacob's Triumph would

would be codified in an extraordinary

new law when on April 19th

1965 mayor Robert Wagner signed

legislation establishing the landmarks

preservation

commission the agency came 2 years too

late to save Penn Station but in the

years to come it would save hundreds of

individual buildings in New York from

the records ball along with entire

districts including Brooklyn Heights

Greenwich Village and Soho

itself vibrant places Robert Moses had

yearned so passionately to

[Music]

transform well the Dark Side of Moses's

character was probably every bit as

prominent as the bright side especially

in the context of New York

City on the one hand we can admit that

the city needed a Robert Moses to adapt

and become a modern city on the other

hand Robert Moses saw the city in some

sense as a transportation problem but

New York is more than a transportation

problem and having created let's say the

kind of minimal number of New Roads and

new bridges that the city needed to sort

of function in the second half of the

20th century then he began to maybe

continue that beyond what was absolutely

essential and persons like Jane Jacobs

and others began to say now wait a

minute why do we need this road that the

whole purpose of things is not to see

how fast you can move traffic that

there's a City there that there are

people who live in neighborhoods there

are people who like it the way it is and

I think that Moses never really

understood that a man who never drove

but who created an automobile kind of

circumstance a man who was responsible

for Planning and Building this enormous

metropolis and I think you can't escape

the feeling that he really wasn't

comfortable in the very City that he was

responsible for building

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are you surprised that after all this

time and the evidence that we've seen in

cities like Detroit and uh all the sort

of urban disasters that we've experience

that that in some ways you're still

regarded as a radical no it doesn't

surprise

me

um people don't change their minds that

fast somebody said

um it's rather Grim thing that uh

progress occurs funeral by

funeral and I think there's a lot of

Truth to that

um I put a great deal of faith in young

people uh of course they turn old and

they may get Frozen in their ideas but

uh they don't have quite as much trouble

accepting new

ideas okay I'm on the left and I want to

embrace Jane Jacobs I'm in the center

and I want to embrace Jane Jacobs I'm on

the right and I want to embrace Jane

Jacobs I have reasons from all

ideological positions to both love you

and loathe you yeah that's because I'm

not

ideological what I think ideologies are

blinders always have been the kind of

mind I have is

basically uh a scientific

one and I

respect um observation and

experiment and what

happens and not

uh abstractions or theories about what

ought to be or what ought to

happen I like to know how things really

work you hold creativity and innovation

in real high esteem yes because we have

to do things better than we're doing

them and where are we going to get

better ways if we aren't creative and if

we aren't Innovative we use what's

called human capital our skills

experience and human capital is

wonderful it's the it doesn't run out

the more you use it the more you have of

it I want to close on uh Jane Jacobs

because uh here you are you're writing

books you told me before you're going on

a book Tour all over the West Coast I

noticed when there was a an issue about

a highrise in Yorkville and Tonto you

were at the public uh meeting what keeps

you so passionately committed to the

things that you really believe in well

I'm really much more passionately

committed to writing about them that's

what I um that's my real work and that's

what I'm most eager to do I don't like

getting in these fights I they make my

life abs

uh not because it's absurd to to oppose

these things if you're a responsible

person you have to

oppose uh things that are dumped right

on your neighborhood right in the area

that you know

about

uh

but uh I don't choose these issues

they're they're absurd issues usually

and I feel they make my life absurd they

seem to be some idea that I enjoy being

a troublemaker no I

enjoy uh sitting and writing and

learning

um and uh trying to educate

people um I don't enjoy

uh having to push all that aside for

nonsense Jane Jacobs I want to thank you

very much for joining me as always it's

a real pleasure

oh thank you you have very good

questions inspired by This brilliant

champion of Common Sense a street was

named for Jane Jacobs in ion it

intersects with Misa street named for

lvic Von misas who actually had a lot in

common with Jane Jacobs included below

this video are links to the Amazon

author page for Jane Jacob so you can

check out her books as well as links to

the interviews excerpted here and a

video I produced about the about how the

Robert Moses methods have been applied

in Charleston over the last 50 years

thanks again for listening