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Excerpt from A Plan for Civic Improvement for the City of Oakland, California Gentlemen: You have instructed me to examine the city of Oakland with a view to suggesting such changes as may add to its attractiveness and enhance its civic beauty. Since concluding the investigations made in response to this request, the city of San Francisco has suffered from such a calamity that in the first rush of sympathy it has seemed a heartless and inappropriate act to plan for the pleasures and beauty of a neighboring community. But in the larger view, in the light of calm consideration rather than of emotion, this must appear to be a wise procedure. The citizens of San Francisco themselves are planning for a greater city; and however necessary for you such forethought may before have seemed, the recent events has added vastly to its importance. Oakland can hardly fail, now to increase even more rapidly than heretofore in population and in business. To increasing extent it must become more than the dormitory of San Francisco, - while becoming that also with more than former emphasis. You have to plan for a great city, and for a population that to a peculiar extent will need parks and pleasure grounds; and if these reservations are not chosen now, the cost and general difficulties of securing them will grow much more rapidly than will your ability to meet them. What is not planned for at this propitiously early date may never be obtained. Indeed, there are few cities that, with a power to prepare for the future, are given the opportunity to for see it with such clearness as it may now be confidently predicted here. Nor is it heartless thus to consider your own future. The future Oakland will certainly be the home of many of tho see who have recently suffered in San Francisco. It can scarcely be doubted that in anticipating that you are as certainly planning for the pleasure and comfort of thousands of them as for the happiness and well-being of yourselves. But before drawing a picture of the Oakland you ought to make, we must consider the Oakland that is. It were idle to contemplate revolutionary schemes. In order that the city may prosper while it grows there is needed, not a new Oakland, but a developed Oakland. I conceive it my duty to study what can be made out of Oakland, not how it might be made over. And let me say here that I have found the pursuit of these investigations a most inspiring and pleasant task, not alone because of the city's lovely natural setting and the need that advantage be taken of this while time remains, but because of the administrations tireless and cordial co-operation in the work and of the confident and generous backing by the press. City Building A Science. Nor shall we be dealing with only esthetic needs. Modern city building is a science quite as much assert. It has to do also with social, moral, commercial and industrial problems, for the beautifying of a city is not artistically done and, therefore not well done, unless it incidentally helps to solve such questions just as these problems -have not been solved properly until their solutions incidentally add to the- beauty of the city. For beauty is not an ornament to be stuck on. Its essence lies in its structural utility. We must consider, therefore, not merely the superficial beauty of the city, but the convenience of its traffic, the social and economic as certainly as the toporraphical divisions of the urban territory; the items of fire protection and of hygienic requirements, of property values; the future needs as well as the present, and the consistency of the whole plan as well as excellence of details. I shall go into no discussion of all this, as it would take a volume; but, underlying every recommendation, I can assure you, there will have been consideration of these many factors.
Hella Town reveals the profound impact of transportation improvements, systemic racism, and regional competition on Oakland’s built environment. Often overshadowed by San Francisco, its larger and more glamorous twin, Oakland has a fascinating history of its own. From serving as a major transportation hub to forging a dynamic manufacturing sector, by the mid-twentieth century Oakland had become the urban center of the East Bay. Hella Town focuses on how political deals, economic schemes, and technological innovations fueled this emergence but also seeded the city’s postwar struggles. Toward the turn of the millennium, as immigration from Latin America and East Asia increased, Oakland became one of the most diverse cities in the country. The city still grapples with the consequences of uneven class- and race-based development-amid-disruption. How do past decisions about where to locate highways or public transit, urban renewal districts or civic venues, parks or shopping centers, influence how Oaklanders live today? A history of Oakland’s buildings and landscapes, its booms and its busts, provides insight into its current conditions: an influx of new residents and businesses, skyrocketing housing costs, and a lingering chasm between the haves and have-nots.
An Architectural Guidebook to San Francisco and the Bay Area is the definitive guide to the history and architecture of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. This compendium has been written and photographed by Susan Cerny and twelve Bay Area experts and provides a historic record of how the area developed to became what it is today, and discusses transportation systems, city and suburban landscape plans, public parkland, California history, and economic, social, and political influences. Included are San Francisco Victorians, civic buildings, churches, parks, grand Period Revivals, and rustic Arts and Crafts homes, as well as significant vernacular buildings in less publicized neighborhoods and towns. Features include: Buildings by all major San Francisco Bay Area architects from the 1860s to the present. More than 2,000 entries. Architectural landmarks in every Bay Area county, arranged by chapter: San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano, Napa, Sonoma, and Marin. More than 100 cities, towns, and neighborhoods. A history of architectural styles popular in the Bay Area. More than 20,000 copies sold of our previous architecture guide to the Bay Area.
Leading thinkers offer fresh insight into the workings of vibrant, ecological, equitable communities and their economies.
In the aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, residents of the city’s iconic Mission District bucked the city-wide development plan, defiantly announcing that in their neighborhood, they would be calling the shots. Ever since, the Mission has become known as a city within a city, and a place where residents have, over the last century, organized and reorganized themselves to make the neighborhood in their own image. In Making the Mission, Ocean Howell tells the story of how residents of the Mission District organized to claim the right to plan their own neighborhood and how they mobilized a politics of place and ethnicity to create a strong, often racialized identity—a pattern that would repeat itself again and again throughout the twentieth century. Surveying the perspectives of formal and informal groups, city officials and district residents, local and federal agencies, Howell articulates how these actors worked with and against one another to establish the very ideas of the public and the public interest, as well as to negotiate and renegotiate what the neighborhood wanted. In the process, he shows that national narratives about how cities grow and change are fundamentally insufficient; everything is always shaped by local actors and concerns.
The rise of open data in the public sector has sparked innovation, driven efficiency, and fueled economic development. While still emerging, we are seeing evidence of the transformative potential of open data in shaping the future of our civic life, and the opportunity to use open data to reimagine the relationship between residents and government, especially at the local level. As we look ahead, what have we learned so far from open data in practice and how we can apply those lessons to realize a more promising future for America's cities and communities? Edited by Brett Goldstein, former Chief Data Officer for the City of Chicago, with Code for America, this book features essays from over twenty of the world's leading experts in a first-of-its-kind instructive anthology about how open data is changing the face of our public institutions. Contributors include: Michael Flowers, Chief Analytics Officer, New York City Beth Blauer, former director of Maryland StateStat Jonathan Feldman, CIO, City of Asheville Tim O'Reilly, founder & CEO, O'Reilly Media Eric Gordon, Director of Engagement Game Lab, Emerson College Beth Niblock, CIO, Louisville Metro Government Ryan & Mike Alfred, Co-Founders, Brightscope Emer Coleman, former director of the London Datastore Mark Headd, Chief Data Officer, City of Philadelphia "As an essential volume for anyone interested in the future of governance, urban policy, design, data-driven policymaking, journalism, or civic engagement, "Beyond Transparency" combines the inspirational glow and political grit of Profiles in Courage with the clarity of an engineer's calm explanation of how something technical actually works. Here are the detailed how-to stories of many members of the first generation of open government pioneers, written in a generous, accessible style; this compilation presents us with a great deal to admire, ample provocation, and wise guidance from a group of remarkable individuals." -Susan Crawford, author of Captive Audience "Just as he did during his time in my administration, Goldstein has brought together industry leaders to discuss issues of relevance in the open data movement and the practical implications of implementing these policies... This book will help continue the work to make open government a reality across the country." - Mayor Rahm Emanuel, City of Chicago "A must-read for anyone who is passionate about what open data can do to transform city living." - Boris Johnson, Mayor of London