Stimulates Debate about Contemporary City Planning

In celebration of the centennial of the 1909 Plan of Chicago by Daniel H. Burnham and Edward H. Bennett, the Ely Chapter of Lambda Alpha International (LAI) has published The Plan of Chicago @ 100:  15 Views of Burnham’s Legacy for a New Century.  The Burnham Plan Centennial honors the vision of the Plan that shaped metropolitan Chicago for the last century, reflects on what has been accomplished and discusses challenges to the city’s status as a world class city.

In 2003 the Ely Chapter convened a small group to consider the potential for a centennial project. That group has now grown to include hundreds of Burnham Plan Centennial partner organizations, such as community groups, not-for-profit organizations, public agencies, educational and cultural institutions, which are hosting an array of activities during 2009 to celebrate Bold Plans and Big Dreams. Ely Chapter’s contribution to the Centennial is this book and the symposium during the Land Economics Weekend.

The 212 page book features 15 essays from LAI members about the Plan’s legacy and its relevance to contemporary issues. Eleven essays were written by members of Chicago’s Ely Chapter, with four others written by members from other chapters around the country.

A diversity of perspectives on planning, politics, architecture, design, transportation, business and economics is intended to stimulate debate about the Plan’s legacy and contemporary relevance. The book enhances understanding of the practical application of the principles of land economics in the preservation, development, and utilization of land resources in Chicago, other cities in the United States and throughout the world.

Twenty-eight color pages highlight significant planning elements including digitally rescanned drawings from the 1909 Plan, “before and after” aerial photographs of contemporary downtown Chicago, and recent photography by high school students relating to the Plan and its effects. The book also includes three maps and suggestions for further reading.

The first section of the book addresses Burnham and his contemporaries and includes the following  essays: Burnham’s Architects - John H. Nelson; John Nolen: San Francisco’s Daniel Burnham - Roger M. Showley & Michael J. Stepner; The Plan for Pullman and Its Influence on the Plan of Chicago - Michael A. Shymanski; In Father’s Footsteps: Daniel Burnham Jr. and the Chicago Regional Planning Association - Joseph A. Kearney & Joseph P. Schwieterman; Richard T. Ely and the Plan of Chicago - Norman Elkin & Larry E. Lund.

The next section, which is titled the Plan’s impact on Twentieth Century Chicago, includes: Who Needs Office Buildings Anyway? Burnham’s Vision and the New Heart of Chicago - Diane Watry; How Daniel Burnham Accomplished Less (and More) than He Intended To - Lawrence Okrent; The Chicago Plan Commission and the Plan of Chicago - Reuben L. Hedlund; Grant Park Treasure Hunting: Improving and Enhancing “the Most Diversified Cultural Center of All American Cities” - Susan S. Aaron.

The final section of the book discusses lessons for Twenty-first Century city building and includes the following essays: The Future of the Burnham Plan - Leslie S. Pollock; Burnham in the Twenty-first Century - John Norquist; The American University: City Planner of the Twenty-first Century - Richard Galehouse; The Burnham Legacy: To Kelo and Beyond - John C. Murphy; The Centennial of the Plan of Chicago: Food for Thought/Thought about Food - Victoria Cooper; Burnham’s Vision and Twenty-first Century Technologies - N.J. Slabbert & J.J. Hellman.

The hardcover book is value priced at $19.95 (plus tax, shipping and handling) due to the generous support of a grant from LAI’s Land Economics Foundation and sponsorships form Ely Chapter members. If needed, overnight shipping is available on request. Members of Ely Chapter have purchased multiple copies for gifts to clients, colleagues, employees, vendors, neighbors and family.

Discounts are offered for larger orders as follows: orders of 6 – 10 books receive a 10% discount; orders of 11 – 18 books receive a 20% discount; orders of 19 or more books receive a 30% discount. Book orders may be placed at http://www.ely-chicago.org/preorder.doc or by contacting Barbara Morris, Chapter Administrator at (630) 260-0115.