Before World War II, many Americans lived in small towns and villages,
and dreamed of owning their own farm or homestead. After the war ended,
more and more Americans moved to the larger industrial cities, bringing
with them these visions of home ownership. The factories that had been
expanded to supply the war effort were being reconverted to peacetime
production, and jobs were plentiful. Americans were proud of winning the
war, and there was an optimistic mood in the country. The economy was
booming, and everybody wanted a piece of the good life.
In 1947, east coast developer William Levitt had a dream of his own: to
build affordable homes away from the congested cities. Brooklyn-born
Levitt bought acres and acres of potato fields on New York’s Long Island.
For no money down and $65 a month, a $6,900 Cape Cod home could be bought,
and bought they were! Levitt’s dream was so successful that he built and
sold thousands, completing as many as 36 a day. Levittown and the suburban
tract home and lifestyle were born, and the new form of The American Dream
took hold.
At first, this form of land planning and building worked. Large numbers
of people found themselves homeowners, with a yard where they could plant
a garden reminiscent of the farms and country villages from which many
came. Land was plentiful, and with cheap oil and labor, it appeared the
answer had been found: one could work in the city and "live in the
country." Cars were also cheap, allowing workers to drive to town and be
home by sundown.
The Problems With Sprawl
In 1992, some 44 years later, tract housing, suburbia and automobile-centered
transportation are no longer seen as a solution. Rather, they are seen
as part of a complex problem which affects all aspects of our lives from
environmental to economic and social conditions.
An example of one of the many environmental problems has been
identified by the American Farmland Trust, a national organization
representing the interests of farmers. The Trust found that since 1980, 11
million acres of farmland nationwide have been lost to suburban sprawl.
That is one million acres consumed each year. In addition to the loss of
farmland, entire ecosystems are being disrupted and lost to this expansive
land use pattern.
Examples of some of the many economic problems relating to suburban
sprawl were the subject of a cover story in the Nations Business
(Sept., 1991). Author James Drummond states: "Americans lose more than
2 billion hours a year to traffic delays [not counting commuting time,
just delays in commuting], according to Federal Highway Administration.
It says that figure could increase to almost 7 billion hours by 2005. One
estimate pegs the current yearly cost of those delays at $34 billion. Truck
delays alone add $7.6 billion a year to the cost of goods that Americans
buy, according to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation
officials."
The local transportation commission in Ventura County, California (a
semi-rural county with a population of approximately 600,000 located just
north and west of Los Angeles County) found that the County will need to
spend $1.35 billion over the next 8 years to widen roads and build
interchanges just to maintain and slightly improve the current level of
service. That equals over $168 million per year starting this year and
going for another seven years. Where will the money come from to pay for
the needed maintenance and improvements, and what happens after that?
Imagine the advantages of putting that kind of money into sustainable
transit development in the County.
Examples of some of the many social problems relating to current
development patterns have been noted by Marcia D. Lowe, researcher at the
Worldwatch Institute, an independent think-tank that analyzes global
problems. Ms. Lowe notes that low-density, single-use land planning has
contributed to a series of social problems, all stemming from an
increasing breakdown of community. She says this breakdown of community is
brought on, in large part, by the physical separation and dispersion
inherent in suburban sprawl planning. She also explains that geographic
isolation reinforces and encourages exclusionary land-use controls and
social attitudes, dividing entire communities along economic and social
lines. In addition to a breakdown in community, exclusionary land-use
controls tend to create a limited range of housing types, resulting in
among other things, a jobs/housing imbalance.
In summary, low-density single-use suburban tract housing builds in
massive losses of farmland and open space, increased automobile
dependency, growing operation and maintenance costs resulting in
unsustainable economics, pollution, and a spreading sense of physical and
social isolation. All of these factors contributed to the breakdown of the
environment, economy, community and our overall quality of life.