Make No Small Plans...

In early 1900’s Daniel Burnham had a vision for what he wanted Chicago to look like and the way it functioned. To demonstrate his vision he put together a detailed plan in his book titled Plan of Chicago. The plan was used to highlight the many issues within the city life and ways to create a place that people would actually want to live. On page 98 of his book he states,  “At no period in its history has the city looked far enough ahead. The mistakes of the past should be warnings for the future. There can be no responsible fear lest any plans that may be adopted shall prove too broad or comprehensive.”  This statement was extremely justifiable because just from the mere reality of how Chicago functions now as appose to those times, it took efficient planning. The more time and effort you put into something, the better chance of have a well functioning product. Although Burnham passed before his plan could go into effect, all the time that him and those who took over, allowed for most of his plan to go through.

However, Chicago is slowly moving away from Burnham’s plan for the city, which was to make it a place that people wanted to live. Due to Burnham’s focus on highways and railways, he lost focus of what people need most which is livable housing. Although he did a phenomenal job at making Chicago a beautiful place to visit, to live here is difficult for those who are not financially stable. For those without middle class and upper class finances you do not have much chose in where you live. Due this this inconvenience everyone is placed with their own race and class, creating this enormous segregation between those who reside in the city. Thus creating a solidarity between all Chicago residents, not allowing for much interaction with anyone outside your “community.”

Burnham states, “Time and again, the Plan maintains that terrible living conditions diminish the individual and, by extension, the entire city, and so should be of concern to the prosperous as well as the less fortunate.” Unless those of less fortune are soon taken into account when it comes to creating functional parks, livable housing, community etc, than in some 100 years the city will not be livable for even the fortunate. In order to make Chicago a place that everyone would want to live healthy and comfortably we must start with housing and create a better sense of community and less segregation.