Modernism

Modernism was a massive step for urban planning and first began during the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution caused a population explosion within cities by attracting people, from outside the city, closer to factories, markets, transport...etc. As the population within these cities increased the living standards within the centre of the cities (“the slums”) created issues such as poor health/hygiene and decaying social and moral values.   

One of the first measures that arose to tackle these issues included ‘The Parks Movement’. The parks movement was first adopted in London (Victoria Park – 1844-45) which consisted of creating a central park that included recreational facilities and landscaping (walkways, ponds...etc.) which could be accessed by the public.  A central park improved air and water quality whilst creating a separate transport route for pedestrians.

The garden city plan of Ebenezer Howard (1850-1928) greatly contributed to the issues surrounding the industrial revolution. The plan detailed municipal services and amenities such as parks, public gardens, and tree lined boulevards etc. The first garden city was Letchworth which was constructed within proximity of London. Letchworth was planned in accordance with Howards plan however all aspects did not transfer into the final construction.

 

Urban planning was now advancing through modernisation and looking for other ways of advancement into the new age. The Government was starting to show interest in fixing the corruption and managerial inefficiencies within the cities. Urban planning leaned towards looking into the economic and social issues to create a city that functions more efficiently.    

 
All these early concepts still exist today and have been a crucial step in developing the fundamental principals in urban planning.

How Plans Work

 

All great designs are reinforced through a strong framework. Having this framework in place ensures the design works as it was intended. This is also true in urban planning whether it is on a local, regional or national scale. A useful planning tool used to achieve this is a master plan or spatial plan. At the turn of the century these plans were first officially adopted by a city planning commission (Cincinnati’s 1925 Official City Plan) and have continued to this day. These plans were developed to form a structure, protecting the legacy, underlying the city and monumental core, promoting economic development, renewing rivers and open space and improving transportation.

 

Master/spatial plans today may consist of five aspects, including, agendas, policies, visions, designs and strategies. These aspects are referred to as different mechanisms through which plans affect the world.

Plans are a necessity in defining an urban character and structure of a place so that the framework is set as the finer details evolve. Plans today need accurate and up to date data to improve the underlying issues and predict future needs. Once a plan has been developed it is implemented into the planning system to achieve the plans objectives.

A plan can be evaluated, once implemented, to see whether it has achieved the desired outcome. This is undertaken by assessing the effect (effect the plan has had on decision making, actions or outcome), net benefit (was the plan beneficial and to whom), internal validity (did it do what it was intended) and external validity (+or- social benefit). This is the most important part of constructing and implementing a plan because if a plan does not work then what is the point.