Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about Robert Moses

The Power of Moses: Please Wield Responsibly

By Sarah Goodyear | | 2 Comments
An op-ed piece by Eleanor Randolph in today’s New York Times finds yet another lesson in the current re-examination of Robert Moses’s legacy. Randolph looks at the enormously powerful entities, usually known as authorities, that Moses left behind: "public-private hybrid[s] that can collect fees, take on debt and build things with little government interference." Randolph […]

Robert Moses’s Fundamental Misunderstanding

By Jason Varone | | 30 Comments
In the latest issue of the Regional Plan Association’s Spotlight on the Region newsletter, editor Alex Marshall has an outstanding essay responding to the recent burst of Robert Moses revisionism. An excerpt:   It all comes down to capacity. Like many people of his generation, I’m convinced, Moses essentially didn’t understand the different capabilities of […]

Streetfilms: The Defeat of the Mt. Hood Freeway

By Aaron Naparstek | | No Comments
The Defeat of the Mt. Hood Freeway A Clarence Eckerson Streetfilm Running time: 11:42, 28.21 MB, QuickTime In the midst of his reign has New York City’s master-builder, Robert Moses proposed building a network of massive expressways through the middle of Portland, Oregon’s inner-city core. One part of Moses’ plan was to replace a stretch […]

Jane Jacobs Tribute Tonight

By Aaron Naparstek | | 1 Comment
There will be a public celebration for Jane Jacobs this evening, 5:00 pm, under the arch in Washington Square Park. Lisa Chamerblain will be there and has a nice write-up on her blog, Polis: It has become the contrarian fashion to say that Jane Jacobs’ contribution to urban planning didn’t address many of the problems […]