Magnetic Los Angeles: Planning the Twentieth Century Metropolis is a book written by Greg Hise in 1997. This book challenges the notion that Los Angeles lacked planning and order when being created. Many people believe Los Angeles is the result of random dispersion and housing. Magnetic Los Angeles studies the many ways Los Angeles was, in fact, created through planning and industry. There are numerous reasons that factored into Hise’s conclusion, and he states at the end of the book, “In this study I have traced a genealogy back to Ebenezer Howard’s garden city and the planned dispersion of the nineteenth-century industrial city” (Hise 215). Hise studies the long history of California and the state’s city planning. In particular, Hise focuses
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“No longer primarily a way-station, the FSA camps now had to function immediately as a self-contained settlement and, at the same time, possess the infrastructure and facilities for a future complete community” (109). The model of this new plan was created and the new town was called Woodville. Woodville was the “nucleus for a new small town” (DeMars qtd.109). This town was different from its predecessors. Woodville’s housing was zoned by type. The temporary housing was in the northwest quadrant, furthest from the entrance. The apartments and labor homes were in the southeast quadrant. These homes surrounded the “center” of Woodville. The “center” was comprised of a school, community center, and store. The community center contained amenities like a library, nursery school, clinic, assembly hall, and camp offices. Playing fields, including a baseball diamond, were located adjacent to the elementary school, because “recreation was considered essential for a balanced community” (111). Woodville was the gleaming model of community planning, at least to the FSA and critics alike. However, soon after residents settled into Woodville, a huge influx of people from out-of-state began migrating toward “high-paying jobs in industrial urban centers” (114). It was not long until the migrant workers living in camps began heading to the cities as well. Therefore, Woodville was not as bustling as …show more content…
These developments also helped the planning of Los Angeles. After World War 2, America was facing an extreme housing shortage. Soldiers were coming home, and many people were having babies as a result. The need for long-term housing was high. Kaiser Homes, a company comprised of partners Fritz Burns and Henry J. Kaiser, wanted to capitalize on this need for houses. The partners set out to create an enterprise in home and community building. They began building communities, not unlike the FSA’s camps that were built only a few years prior. The Kaiser communities had a recreational center, school, and a clinic. Many of the Kaiser Community Homes were prefabricated, which meant everything necessary for a home was delivered and assembled on site. There were many Kaiser Companies that provided all the materials and appliances for the houses. These houses were being built fast, and as one builder working for Kaiser Homes said, “Four weeks after ground was broken, a completed three-bedroom home was ready for occupancy every thirty minutes of the working day” (qtd. 166). These houses were low-cost; Kaiser proposed the construction of one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes. These homes ranged from “$2,427 for a 500-square-foot one-bedroom model to $3,894 for a three-bedroom, 976-square-foot home with carport” (165-166). These prices included land costs and improvements, as well as access to community facilities and medical
“No longer primarily a way-station, the FSA camps now had to function immediately as a self-contained settlement and, at the same time, possess the infrastructure and facilities for a future complete community” (109). The model of this new plan was created and the new town was called Woodville. Woodville was the “nucleus for a new small town” (DeMars qtd.109). This town was different from its predecessors. Woodville’s housing was zoned by type. The temporary housing was in the northwest quadrant, furthest from the entrance. The apartments and labor homes were in the southeast quadrant. These homes surrounded the “center” of Woodville. The “center” was comprised of a school, community center, and store. The community center contained amenities like a library, nursery school, clinic, assembly hall, and camp offices. Playing fields, including a baseball diamond, were located adjacent to the elementary school, because “recreation was considered essential for a balanced community” (111). Woodville was the gleaming model of community planning, at least to the FSA and critics alike. However, soon after residents settled into Woodville, a huge influx of people from out-of-state began migrating toward “high-paying jobs in industrial urban centers” (114). It was not long until the migrant workers living in camps began heading to the cities as well. Therefore, Woodville was not as bustling as …show more content…
These developments also helped the planning of Los Angeles. After World War 2, America was facing an extreme housing shortage. Soldiers were coming home, and many people were having babies as a result. The need for long-term housing was high. Kaiser Homes, a company comprised of partners Fritz Burns and Henry J. Kaiser, wanted to capitalize on this need for houses. The partners set out to create an enterprise in home and community building. They began building communities, not unlike the FSA’s camps that were built only a few years prior. The Kaiser communities had a recreational center, school, and a clinic. Many of the Kaiser Community Homes were prefabricated, which meant everything necessary for a home was delivered and assembled on site. There were many Kaiser Companies that provided all the materials and appliances for the houses. These houses were being built fast, and as one builder working for Kaiser Homes said, “Four weeks after ground was broken, a completed three-bedroom home was ready for occupancy every thirty minutes of the working day” (qtd. 166). These houses were low-cost; Kaiser proposed the construction of one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes. These homes ranged from “$2,427 for a 500-square-foot one-bedroom model to $3,894 for a three-bedroom, 976-square-foot home with carport” (165-166). These prices included land costs and improvements, as well as access to community facilities and medical