In 1871, a backwards town called Chicago suffered a loss of bovine proportions, a conflagration which burned approximately 4 square miles of narrow roads, crowded wooden buildings> The city had suffered before from a lack of water, sewer, parks and transportation.
In the process, only a few hundred people died, an amazing figure, considering the location, conditions and the technology available. We know it today as the Great Chicago Fire. But 136 years and two weeks ago, they did not think of it so much as a loss, but as an opportunity. So what? We lost 18,000 buildings, warehouses, homes and structures? Hey. THIS IS CHICAGO.
From a small, unimportant cow town, Chicago took the best and brightest and rebuilt itself into what it is today. A modern, well planned, metropolis that had room to grow west, north, south, and most importantly, up. A nice summary is available at the Chicago Historical Society, and wikipedia does a nice job HERE
First, the ashes, muck, brick and half burned lumber. WE viewed this not as trash, but as the basis of the 1909 Burnham Plan, We pushed that muck into the lake, proclaimed it a park, and forced the lake front ricketty train tracks to go low, below the traffic and park levels. Building on the lakefront became illegal, except for museums, oceanariums, art musee, and an ugly toilet bowl like monstrosit (stadium) we call Soldier Field.
Second, we created a logical grid street system with extrawide roads. This permitted easy, logical, and easily zoned growth that was a boon to every future architect and planner.
Third, we required sewer, water, power, availability combined with a new fangled invention that New York can only dream of, especially during a strike. We call it an alley. It is where you put your garage, and where you stash the trash for pickup.
Fourth, we planned roads, freight handling, river usage, water usage and even commercial docks, all of which turned Chicago, and not St. Louis, the most important city in the midwest. Hell, we even reversed the flow of the Chicago river, to keep Lake Michigan's water pristine, while our shit went to Missouri. (aimed directly at the heart of St Louie, by accident I am sure. WHich is why they did it secretly, under the cover of darkness, before the marshalls could serve a restraining order on the city officials)
lastly, we invited and nurtured architects, dreamers, scientists, creators, discoverers, artisans, and even more dreamers. and we forced them all to deal with a much higher standard. No more wooden buildings. No more narrow fire hazards. No lack of general sewage, water, or sources of energy.
Despite the best (and worst) efforts of many different Californian founding fathers, growth in SoCal has been, well, insane. Communities with little water or planning popped up on hills, trees were chopped to allow views of the ocean, at least until the hill became developed itself. Now that Mother Earth has done to SoCal what a cow did to Chicago, they have an incredible opportunity. Here is their mission, should they choose to accept it:
a) Population density, transportation, living necessities.
Require a real, regional, growable public transportation system that works with the natural surroundings, instead of creating endless miles of cement and asphalt.
Build with reality in mind. Certain population densities can do well, but planners have to take into account the local temper tantrums of Saint Ann, or Santa Ana, as she is known there. The earth tends to shake and bake, and both have to be accounted for.
Water. Water. Water. Stealing river and lake water from elsewhere worked fine for the first 150 years, and even gave us a great Jack Nicholson movie. But the reality is here and now. Sustainable, renewable, and recyclable issues must be built in to each new structure. Water usage must be adapted and adopted with these painful realities in mind. It can be done. It will be done. It MUST be done.
Power. What a great effing opportunity to go green, solar, wind, renewable from the onset. What a great time to use the best technology to ease future problems 20-50 yrs from now.
Cars. This is the last mastedon of the west. Time to break this addiction and life liveable. In reality, do people really want to spend 2 hours in a jam, when a doable truly effective public trans system can get them anywhere in 45 minutes? And by anywhere, I mean everywhere.
Nature. Designers cannot simply claim land from nature helter skelter, then act surprised when she gets angry. They have to take into account, and plan for fire, drought, and more. It can be done. It will be done, and along with these and many more points,
IT MUST BE DONE.
All we need is the will, the leadership, the administrative ability and the dream to do it right.