Summary Comments on Chapters 4, 5 & 6

CHAPTER 4: LIVING LOCAL

"The urbanist city was full of citizens who were committed to it -- by choice, by chance of birth, by economic necessity, or by some combination of these...." (p.113) Rae then goes on to describe the "fully grounded city citizen," as opposed to the mere visitor or suburban commuter.

Rae follows up with some comments about "urbanity," or the quality of being "urbane," which entails contact with people of very different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. And for the city to function and interaction to work, one needs to be urbane, which is also a hallmark of civilzation. (p. 114)
(1) But modern cities are more organized so as to minimize contact with difference; Rae describes what so many cities like New Haven have become -- "a pattern of organized isolation." (p. 115 mid)

There is a fair amount (perhaps too much) of boring detail about who lived where, but the overall point is well-taken: that different classes, different statuses (eg. professors, seamstresses, laborers, etc.), different ethnicities all identified with and lived in the city of New Haven.

"Close Quarters, Strange Voices" (p. 136) does recognize the downside of this "grounded localism:" very high densities, deplorable conditions of tenements, back tenements being "a frightfully wasteful method of housing, morally and socially, as well as economically."

Rae concludes with some interesting comments about the "suburbs within," one of which would later become an area for public housing and not much else. (pp. 138-40)

Today, separation of work and life is enscribed in the layout of the city.


CHAPTER 5: CIVIC DENSITY

The two opening quotes are a real key to the rest of the chapter. The importance of voluntary organizations to our democracy is highlighted. Rae staunchly defends Schlesinger's claim that voluntary organizations have been "schools of self-government," especially in cities. And, as he emphasizes later, these voluntary organizations gave many ordinary people opportunities for leadership that they did not have in the workplace. CEOs were also among the leaders of these organizations, but for the most part blue collar folks took charge. Secondly, the idea of "SOCIAL CAPITAL" is crucial. Urbanism was a necessary prerequisite to the development of social capital which is crucial to the well-being of individuals and the larger community.

Voluntary organizations are the "CIVIC FAUNA" -- the animal life of that city habitat.

Amazing how involved in various organizations people were: (see p. 162) "All, or virtually all, of the people who were assembled by these organizations -- whether for religious worship or a fraternal lodge meeting or a sporting contest -- were members of locally grounded communities." (pp. 143-4)

I can personally identify with what Rae says about the importance of Catholic parishes (see, bottom p.150-1). And "...the Catholic parish system, with its intense commitment to place, represents a stabalizing force as the centered, grounded city begins to dissolve (mid to late-20th century)." (p. 152)

Interesting how Yale University and the hospitals were also very much grounded in that community at that time, although that will change later as Yale develops a more national and international focus.

The neighborhood (public) schools played a key part in knitting the diverse population of New Haven together. "The neighborhood school represents civic density at its thickest." (p. 176)

Finally, the last section, "Civic Density and Social Capital Formation," (pp. 181-2) is just excellent from start to finish, and it provides a summary of sorts for chapters 2-5. Social capital, centering, groundedness, civic density -- all key aspects of urbanism at its height, and something we desperately need to restore to cities in the 21st century.


CHAPTER 6: A SIDEWALK REPUBLIC

Conflict between business or property interests and residents' interests is much wider today. At the time of urbanism, these often conflicting interests were closer together -- many more people had a stake in the economic vitality of the city and they lived there as well. Many were small business owners. (see p. 186)

Mayor Rice's attitude toward the "City Beautiful" ideal and the proposals inspired by it was one of disdain and non-action. He had a sense that these proposals were beyond the capacity of city government to achieve. Mayor Rice believed in the market (the private economic sector), which may have worked during his administration, but which would later contribute to the demise of urbanism and the rise of sprawl. Market forces which were behind the auto industry and single family homes dictated a decentralized future.

Mayor Rice was a great mayor in his own right and at that time. He was honest and worked within the limits of what city government could do to satisfy his citizen customers. But he was also lucky to have inherited the city's economic and social strength. Last couple pages of the chapter are interesting and significant. (see, pp. 209-11)

Mayor Rice's greatest achievement -- sidewalks, which as he once said he used to say just to needle (irritate) the grandiose "City Beautiful" proponents.

Significance of referring to Mayor Rice's tenure as mayor as "The Sidewalk Republic" I believe may be to draw a stark contrast with the grandiose ideas of City Beautiful.