By Frank Hebbert, Associate Planner, RPA
Whether it's democracy emerging out of ancient Athens, or algebra emerging out of ninth century Baghdad, cities have been fountains of innovation and creativity since the first city arose in Mesopotamia some five thousand years ago.
Cities not only produce innovation, they innovate themselves and how they function. Streetcars, water and sewer systems, gas and electric supply, elevators, steel-frame construction--all emerged from cities as they attempted to manage themselves better. American cities were particularly spectacular in their pace of innovation and change. The history of American cities is the story of innovation in how we travel, how money is made, the arts, the buildings we inhabit, and the products and ideas we make, sell, and buy.
But that trajectory of innovation has not been universally beneficial or sustainable. We have a mixed record of solving problems equitably and comprehensively, particularly in a timely fashion. New Yorkers, for example, suffered with an inadequate and leaky private water system for half a century until leaders and citizens generated the political will to build a public water system that opened in 1842.
In more contemporary times, we have watched and coped as residential development moved out into the fringes, urban cores collapsed, industry faded. As always, the target keeps moving. The ecosystem we share is out of balance, locally and globally. The latest tall buildings going up are not here. Much of the nation's extensive rail infrastructure is no longer in use, and what remains is slow compared to other nations. For a fast, easily available internet connection--the infrastructure successor to last century's gas and electricity networks--look elsewhere. Those million-strong cities in China are only getting bigger. As international fortunes change, other countries jostle upwards in the indices of manufacturing, finance, and creative output. We are still grappling with how to grow well, and how to grow fairly.
There is great possibility in the abundant technological choices that lie practically at our feet. Whether it's universal wireless access, or sewers that electronically send messages of leaks, the possibilities of producing what might be called the "intelligent metropolis" are endless. What is needed is some grappling with these possibilities, and a movement forward to action. We're in a new chapter of American cities, a time of rebound, regrowth, and new beginnings.
Next year, RPA will convene its annual Regional Assembly to discuss Innovation and the American Metropolis. For this, our twentieth assembly, we will as usual bring the nation's foremost civic, business and public leaders together to discuss how the region can innovate rapidly, successfully, and equitably. For more information, visit regionalassembly.org, sign up for updates and join us on April 16, 2010.
RPA will host New York Governor David Paterson, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and economist Mark Zandi at the 19th Annual Regional Assembly this Friday, April 17th at the Waldorf=Astoria, from 8:00am - 3:00pm.
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