Summary Of Death And Life Of Great American Cities By Jane Jacobs

Jane Jacobs starts off her introduction in “The Death and Life of Great American Cities” by introducing new principles in city planning. Jacob talks about the sacking of cities that have been built with the first several billion dollars provided There is a myth if there was enough money to spend, all the slums would be vanished in ten years. Coming from an area where there are quite a few low-income projects, I disagree with this myth. I don’t believe that there will ever be enough money in this world to make all the slums go away. It’s not that low-income project houses don’t deserve new replacements and brand new homes, it’s the fact that people take them for granted. Why put money in low-income houses if people aren’t going to respect them
A planner in a bar states that the North End is an embarrassment for Boston. Bankers say that it’s a slum and refuse to give out loans when Jacob thinks it’s thriving. Bankers, like planners, have theories about cities on which they act. Jacob states that this book will be adventuring in the real world. She explains her principles regarding her four primary conditions. Jacob also lives in New York so many examples will be from there but also what she had noticed in other cities. She also states that we need to learn and apply as much knowledge that is true and useful about cities as soon as possible (pg. 23). She includes ideas from Ebenezer Howard, Nathan Glazer, Patrick Geddes, and Le Corbusier. In the first chapter on uses of sidewalks: safety Jacob talks about the purpose of sidewalks and streets; that they are more than just for carrying pedestrians and use for cars. They can act as a boundary between a building and are the most important aspect to a city. They are the main publicity of a city and by themselves, they are nothing but an abstraction. Basically, the thought of what a city's streets is is the thought of the city
Jacob compares the sidewalks sometimes like the jungle and no amount of police can help. She talks about the beauty of Los Angeles and how great it is, but mentions it’s composed of strangers who are not all nice. There are some streets, like in Boston's North End, that can’t afford any opportunities to street cruelty. Jacobs notes that there are three main qualities to successful neighborhoods on page 44. The first is for there to be a clear line between public and private space. The second is that the eyes of the neighborhood must be not only on the streets but on the sidewalks also. The third is for the sidewalks and streets to be in constant use. It is also noted that good lighting is very important and more important to value them.Lighting on sidewalks can turn from dangerous to safe by some simple bright lights but lighting is not enough. When streets have lights and an intersection, it attracts people and safety. Jacob also talks about the three modes to live with to deal with insecurities with unsafe cities and hopefully maybe in time others will be invented. She also describes her own block of Hudson Street, an intricate sidewalk