Suburbs - residential and industrial

Lecture 12 ? Suburbs: Residential and Industrial S.E. Gross ? developer, advertising of the American dream Not just the metropolises had streetcar suburbs, also included Sunbelt cities Freeways in LA almost exactly parallel the old streetcar lines Suburbanization of industry ? locating to periphery, following rail lines (people probably followed the factors, not the other way) Chicago and LA zoning maps show branches of industry that extend outward ? spreading started much earlier than WWII Zones of concentric circle Loop Factory zone Zone of transition Zone of working men?s homes Residential zone Commuting zone But this is too simple for the early 20th century city ? zones are cut through by bands of industry ? polynucleated zones create segregated diversity Quasi-suburban and manufacturing districts result from segregated diversity Richer enclaves sought to protect their neighborhoods ? 1890s-1920s ? political and social tools first instituted: subdivision regulations, municipal incorporation, land use laws, zoning laws, organized resistance or mob violence Chief impact of automobile was allowing fulfillment of desire to move between the hub and spokes ? limitless Builder?s kits, prefabricated homes, large companies all sprout up Basically, mail-order amenities to add on the housing kits Consolidation of the real estate industry in order to sell the American dream NAREB ? cultural ideal of homeownership, and protected political conditions that allowed fast suburbanization Euclid vs. Ambler ? challenges to zoning upheld Corrigan vs. Buckley ? racial covenants in deeds upheld 1931 ? Hoover?s conference on home building and homeownership to figure out how banking and government could get involved- Hoover had been commerce secretary and had good relations with NAREB During the New Deal, official policy combine HOLC and FHA ? loan-giving, standardization of land use FHA: Grid plan subdivisions are nixed for funding. A real profitable neighborhood has winding streets, more picturesque properties ? FHA would underwrite that Fears that WWII artificially pumped up the economy ? so business must be grown Stoke consumer demand in post war era, particularly demand for homes Idyllic advertisements Mortgage programs for veterans ? low down payments Even in late 40s, ideals for private home aren?t entirely accepted widespread Low income housing was unavailable to the poor veterans ? intense shortage for these people Some suggestions were to invigorate public housing. Anything built was in inner cities. Nationally, developers and NAREB opposed public housing. Developers fear public housing would compete with the private market; FHA was encouraging private capital, while the government still urged public housing Joseph McCarthy is the strongest advocate for housing industry ? staged hearings with carefully planned witnesses