164 The Urhanizaıioıı ofCtıpıtal

undcr which srruggles o~cur. le also focuses our aerenrion on how capiralism
crearc:s
,
sparıal
•
organızarıon
, •
as one of ehe: precondirions of irs own Jrı•·rı)~ eu-
C C

atton .. Far from dısruptmg ehe: Marxian vision, ehe injection of real gco-
graphıcal_ concerns enrıch~s it bc:yond ali mcasure. By rha_r parh we ınighc 7
1 hope to lıberare ourselvc:s from ehe chairıs ofa spaceless Marxisc orchodoxv as
:i of bourgeois rcrrear inro parcial rcpresencacions ~ nd
1'
1
well
.. as from. . thc
. furility
,
naıvc cmpırıcısm . fhe srakcs of hiscorical and gc:ographical srrugglc: are far
On Planning ehe Ideology of Planning
i'
11 coo . grcar ro allow ehe luxury of such rctreacs. Thc hisrorical gc:ography of
I·
ıı _capıealısın has co be ehe ceneral objecr of eheoreeical cnquiry in ehe same wa
thar İt is ehe nexus of policical acrinn. y
1

,I'.
ı,

, ı

il
1,
le is a cruism co say chat we ali plan. Bur planning asa professi_o n hasa muc_h
more resrricred domain . Fighc as they mighr for some ocher rarıonale for eheır
exisrence, profcssional planners find rhemsc:lves confined, for ehe mose pare,
co ffijasl< pf defining an<l aeeempring J.Q, achieve a "succe~sful" ordering_of
1

ehe built environmenr. in ehe ulttmace ınstance ehe planner ıs concerncd wıth
1
ehe "propcr" locaei9n, ehe ap,eropriace mix. of acrivities in space of ali ehe

lı dive;; elemencs rhat make up ehe rorality of physical srrucrures - ehe houses,
roads, faccories, offices, warer and sewagc: disposal facilities, hospicals,
ıı
ı, schools, and ehe Iike - char conscirure ehe builc environmenr . From rime ·co
time ehe spatial ordering of ehe built environmenf is rrearc<l as an end
l
sufficienc unco irsclf, and some form of eıı.vironmenr;ı.I dccccroinlsm rakc:s
hold. Ar orher rimes rhis ordering is seen as a reflecrion rather chan a
determinant of social relarions, and planning is seen as a ~rather rhan as
J ~n - and so ehe planner hcaves hiınself away from ehe drawing board co
accend meerings wich bankers, coınmunity groups, land developers, and ehe
like, in ehe hope chac a rirnely inrervencion here ora preventive measurc chere
may achieve a "better'' overall resule. ·Bur "beccer" assumes somc purpose
which is easy enough co specify in general but morc difficulc co parcicularizc
about. As a physical resou rce coınplex create<l our of humarı Jabor and
iogenuity, ehe builr cnvironmenr must primarily funcrion ro be uscful for
productioo, circulacion , cxchangc, and consumprion. le is ehe job of ehe
planner to intervcne in ehe producrion of this ı:omplex cornposire cornınodity

r
and to ensurc irs proper managcmenr and mainrcnance. Bur rhis imrnediarely
poses ehe quesrion, useful or bcHcr for wbac and co whoıp?

l. PLANNING A:--ID THE REPRODUCrtON OF THE SOCIAL ORDER

I~ wo~ld be easy ro jump froın chcsc inirial quescions scraighr away inco some
P uralısric m odel of sociecy in which ehe planncr acrs cichcr as an arbitraror or

111
166 The Uı·bmıiz,ıtiım ıı/Capital 11'1' On Plan,;,,, ıh, IJ,,,f"KJ' "/ Plann;,,, 167

as a correcrivc weighr in rhe conflicrs amongsr ,, <liversiry of inrercsr ,,

. . . . broups,
1 -~.:
•effıcacy O
f he
t
conceııts employcd . Yer mosr of us blanch when faced wirh a
. · • • f ·l
cach o f whıch scrıvcs ro ger a pıccc of ehe pıe Such a ı· um11 leaves otıt a . · . · ı Jcscriı)tion of socıety whıch .appeals ro ehe concept o c ass
. ~ · ' trucıal socıo 1ogıca . . If . . h
step . Socıety works, afrer ali, on rhe basic principlc that rhe most ,·m . • berwecn landlords, laborers, an<l capıtalısrs . we wrırc ın suc
. . . . . . porr,ıııc reJauons . . . . . 1 J t·
acrıvıty ıs rhar whıch conrrıbures to ırs own reproduction. W/e do nor h ill likely be dismisse<l as roo sımplıstıc or as engagıng ın eve s o
. 6 . . ~ru cerms, we w . . J i
enquıre ar to find our whar thıs activity entails. Considcr, for examplc , rht · hich make no sense Ar worsr such conceprs wıll be regar et as
absrracrıon w · ' . . . ..
varıoııs conceprions of the ciry as "workshops of indusrrial civilizatio .. . er · d ideological compared ro ehe supposc<lly nonıdeologıcal rnnccprs
" c n, ,IS oIIensıve an . .
nerve centers ıor the economic, social, culcural and polirical !ite" of sociccv d Jabor and capical. Why and on what grounds, phılosophıcal,
of Ian ' ' . d
as cencers for innovarion, exchange, and communication , and as livi~g·
. fı 1
·
pracrıca ,
ı or ocherwise was it decide<l that one form of abscraccıon ma esense
' . · k
envıronmenrs or ~eoplc . Ali of rhese - and morc - are common enouglı d was appropriare while ehe ocher was out of or<ler! Docs ıt not m~ ·c
conc~prıons. An<l ıf we accepr one or ali of ehem, thcn ehe role of rhı.; pla n r.ırı l :Sonable sense to connect our sociological rhinking with our economıcs,
can_ sımply be ~~fi~ed as ensuring rlı~c the builr environmenc comprises rhose -f- albeit in a rarher simpliscic and priınirivc way? Does ic make sense evcn, to
neccssary physıcal ınfrascrunurcs whıch serve ehe processes we have in m in<l . reli ehe inner-cicy ccnanc chac ehe rene paid to the landlord is not really a
lf thc "workshop" dissolves inco a chaos of disorganizacion , if ehe "ncrv; - - aymenc ro rhat man who drives a big car an<l lives in the suburbs but a
cencer" loses irs cohercnce, if innovation is stymied, if communicarion and ~ayment co a scarce facror of producrion:ı T~e "scienriza_rion" of_social science
exchangc processes bccome garbled, if ehe living condicions becomc inroler- seems ro have been accomplished by maskıng rcal socıal relatıonshıps - by
able, chen the reproduc.:rion· of ehe social ordcr is in doubc . repr~senring ehe social relations between people and groups of peopk as
We can push this argumenc fare her. W e !ive, after ali , in a sociccy chac, for relations berween things . T_be reilicaJjon implie<l by this tacric is plain
wanc ofa bettcr phrasc, is founded on capicalisc principles of privace propcrry enough to see, and ehe dangers of reificarion are well known. Yer wc seem to
and market cxchange, a socicty chat presupposes certain hasic social rclarion- be ar ease wirh ehe rcifications and ro accepr ehem uncricically, cvcn rhough
ships wirh respecc ro production, discribucion, and consumpcion wlıich ehe possibility cxists thar in so doing we dcsrroy our capaciry ro underscand,
chemsclves musc be rcproduced if the social order is ro survivc. An<l so wc ma~age, control, and al cer ehe social ordcr in ways favorable to our in<lividual
arrive' ar whac may appear a racher cosmic qucscion : what is ehe role of cİıe orcollective purposes. in this chaprer, thcrefore, I scck to place the planner in
urban-regional planner in ehe conccxc of thesc overall proccsses of soci.ıl rhe contexr ofa sociological description of society which sees class rclations as
repro<lucrion;, Crirical analysis should reveal ehe answers . Yet it is a ıncasure fundamencal .
of ehe failings of concemporary social science (from which ehe planning
licerarurc Jraws ınuch of irs inspiration) thac we have ro approach answers
il. CLı\SS RELATIONS AND Tf-lE llUILT ENVIRONMENT
wirh circumspecrion as well as racr should wc dare rn deparr from rhe
traditional canons as ro what may or may not be said. For rhis reason I sha!I
in any sociecy rhe acrual class relations _thac exisc are bound to be complex and
begin wirh a brief <ligression in order ro opcıı: up n~w viscas for discussion .
When we consider the economic syscem, ınost of us feci at home wirh fiuid. This is parricularly rruc in a sociecy such as ours . The class caregories
analyses based on thc categories of lan<l, labor, and capical as "facrors" of w_e use are not regarded as immurable. And in ehe same way that we can
production. We recognizc that social rcpro<luction depends upnn ehe per- dısaggregare land, labor, and capital as facrors of producrion, so we can
pctual combination of these elemen es and thar growrh requires tlıe recombi- produce a finer mesh of caregories to describc ehe class srructure. We know
th
nacion of rhesc facrors into new configuracions that arc in some sense more ac land and property ownership comprises residual feudal institurions (ehe
productive. These categories, we ofcen admit , arc racher too abscract, and church, for eıcample), large property companics, part-time landlords , home-
from time ro time we brcak ehem Jown ro cake accounc of ehe facr rhııt owners, and so on . We know also that ehe inceresrs of rcncicr "ınonev
ncicher land nor !abor is homogeneous and chac capiral can cake produccive ~apitali 5 rs" may diverge subscanrially from ehe inrerests of producers i;
ındusrry a d · 1 d . .
(physical) or liquid (monc}') form . Ncvertheless, we seem prepared to accepr a . be 'n agrıcu _r:1re an . rhar ehe laborıng class ıs not homogencous
high !evci of .ıbscracrion, wirhouc roo much quescioning as to rhe validiry or . cause _of thı: srratıfications and differencials generat ed according ro ehe
h ıerarchıc ı d · · ·
t . a ıvısıon o f la bor and various wage rates. But in a shorc chaprer of
1 These va rio us concepıions of ıhc ciq• can be fouıı<l in. for cxamrlc, L. Mumfor<l ( 196 I>: J. hıs son l musr perforcc srick co thc simplcst caregorıes chat help us co
Jacobs ( 1969): L. W i rıh ( 1964): Naıioııal Rcsourccs Cnmmitıcc (of tht· Unicc<l Sraıt·s) ( 19.\i): ... : : rscand the planner's role within ehe social structure . So Jet us proceed
an<l R . l\,kier ( l %2). ·'· · ıt the sımplest conceprion wc can dev ise and consider, in rurn , how each
.

.
 168 The Uı-ha11izaıion of Capiıa!
l On P!aıminı ıhı: /deolof!.)' rıf P!amıirrg 169

class or fraceion of a class relaees ro ehe buile erıvironmenr, which ıs thc

- ıar ı::acrion of capical seeks a rare of recurn on irs capiral by
primary concern of ehe planner.
(j) A P arcıcu
.
crın
ı;
·l
new c emen
rs ın rhe builc e nvı
. Th · ı:: ·
ıs ıaccıon - e e
. d -
h
constru . engages in a parricular kind of commodıcy pro ucrıon
ccion ınceresr - . f
1· condirions Much of whac happens ın ehe way o
~ The alı
constru
cl ass of la borer~ is madc up of of rhose individuals who seli a racher pecu ıar · · h -
under . . . h be undersrood in rerms of rhe cec ıııca 1,
c mmodır_y - labor power - on ehe market ın rerurn fora wage or salary . The scrucrıon acrıvıcy as ro . .
con . d olirical organizarion of rhe consuucrıon ınreresc.
c~nsumprı~n requıremencs of labor - which are in pracrice highly differen. economıc , an p
rıaeed - wıll ın pare be mer by work wirhin rhe household and in part be ds as ehose who by vircue of rheir ownership of land
fi I dlor
procured_ by exchı-.nges of wages earned againse commodiries produced . Thc 4· We· can d e ne nanexcracr. ' a rene (accual ,
or impuced) for ehe use o rhe
f
commodıcy requıremenrs of labor dcpend upon ehe balance berween domescic and properhey' ca ol ln socieries dominated by feudal residuals, ehe
urces r ey concr - . . . d
economy produccs and market purchases as well as upon ehe environmcncal resodl d . eresc may be quire discinct from rhar of capıcal; but ın rhe Unıce
hisrorical, and culrural considerarions rhar fix ehe srandard of !iving of Jabor: lan or ınc ·
. · n land and propercy bccame a very ımporcanc orm o
fi f
Labor looks to ehe buile cnvironmenc as a means of consumpeion and as a Scaces, owners h ıp ı . d" . l
i heecnrh cenrury onward . Under rhese con ıcıons r 1c
invesrmenc from che e g . . )
,m_ean_s_for irs own reproducrion and, pcrhaps, expansion. Labor is sensieive eo .. and ; md propeııry incercs( js sim12ly reduce_d c~ a facrıon of ca12ı~al (usually ,'-, VJ' .
both che~and rhe spaeial disposieion (aq;css) of ehe various items in ehe c~~oney capiralisrs and rhe rencicrs) invescıng ı n rhc appropnacıoo cıf a·_oc.
buile environmenc - housing, educacional and recrearional facilieics , services This brings i.ıs co consider ehe imporranr role _of pmperc~ companıes,
of ali kinds, and so on - which faci'ıieaee sur,ival and reproduction ac a giveıı ~ . banks, and ocher Jl nancial incermediarıes (ınsurance companıes,
srandard of living .
pension funds, savings and loan associarions, ere .) in rhe land and _propercy
f?J ~e can define ~ apita!isc.s. as ~il rhose who _engage in ~ncrcpreneurial market . And I should also add rhar "~~ do_cs n~r qu ı te__mr,er!__
~crıons of any kınd wıch ehe ıneenc of obeaıning a profir. As a dass, whac ir says, because mosr homeowners accually share equıry wıc~ a financı,ll
capiealises arc primarily concerned wieh accumulacion, and cheir accıvırıcs insticucion ai1d do not possess ciclc ro rhe propcrry . in ehe Unıeed Srares,
form, in our kinci of sociery, ehe primary engine for economic developmenr cherefore , we havc ro ehink of rhc land and property inceresr primarily asa
and growrh. Capital "in general" - which I use as a handy cerm for ehe facrion of capiral -invescing in renral appropriacion .
ca ·calise class asa whole - looks co ehe bııilc enyironmcm for@.9)~~-
Zo/r-ı.de, cly, ehe built cnvironmcnc funceions as a set of use values for enhancing . I shall assumc for purposes of analyric convenience chat a clear dis~incrion
~< , produccion an~ccumularion of capieal. The physical infrasrrucrures form exisrs becween chese classes and factions and ehar each pursues ıes own
,o~~vtf."r, a kinci of fıxed capiral - much of which is colleceively provided and used - incerescs single-m indedly . in a capiealisr sociccy , of coursc, rhe whole
~ ef- f""d.~ which can be used asa ~ f 12roducrion~change, or of ricnılarion. strucrure of social relarions is founded on rhe dominaeion of capiralisrs ovc_E_
~ dly, ehe producrion of ehe builr environmcnc formsa subscancial market laborers. To put ic ehis way is simply ro ackiıowlcdge char rhe capiealiscs
for coınmodiries (such as serucrural seeel) and services (such as legal and make rhe invescmcnt decisions , creare ehe jobs and rhe commodirics, and
~ r v i c e s ) and cherefore concribures ro ehe cocal effrcrive fıınccion as
rhe cacalycic agencs in capiealisr growch . We cannoe hold, on ehe
demand for rhe produces rhac capiralisrs .rhemsclves pro<luce . On occasion ehe one hand, char Arhcrica was creared by ehe efforrs of privare enrrepreneurs and
builr environmcnr can become a kind of "dumping ı-:round" for surplus deny, on ehe ocher, rhae capiral dominares labor. Labor is not passive, of
money capical or i<lle producrive capaciry (somerimes by dcsign , as in ehe course, but irs accions are Jefensive and at best confined ro gaining a
public works programs of ehe 1930s), wich ehe resule rhac chere are periodic reasonable sharc of ehe narional producc. Bur if labor concrolled rhc
boucs of overpro<luc:cion and subscquenr dcvaluarion of rhe assers embeddcd investmenr decisions, chen we would not be justifıed any longer in describinı;
in ehe builr environmenc icself. The "wavelikc" lli!.trı:.(ll of invese_!!}.c nr in rhc our sociecy as capiralisr. Our inccresc here is not so much to focus on ehis
builr cnvironınenr is a very noriceable fcarure İP. rhe econoınic hisrory of pri~ary anta)!onişDl bur ro cxamine ehe myriad se,condary fo rms of confli(4
capiralisc sociceies . 2 whıch can spin off from it ro weave a complex wcb of argumcncs over ehe
Produccion and use of ehe builr environıncnc. Appr~priarors {la nd~ords anJ)
.:, Econornİ<.: <."vclc:s and in pa rr iuılar rhosl· assnc..- iarcd wirh invc:srm<.'nc in rhc.· v.ui,ı~~ propcrcy owners) may be in conflıcc wıch conscruccıon ınccrcsrs. rnpıralıses
coınpo ııt·nrs of rh.c: builr t· nvironıncnr art· "1ist dsscJ in li . Thomas ( 197 _) ): lvt. ı\braınovirz ( 196 :ı), , ·. nıay be dissacisfi ed wieh ehe acrivicies of borlı facrions, an<l la bor may be ar

&
- .ı ,
:; _ Kuznets ( l')(ı i l; aml E. M ,ındd ( 1') 75). Set· ;ı l so Clıap . 1.

.
i•.
 On Planniııg ıhe !deology of Planning 171
170 The Urbanization of Capiıal
. · h' ase is rhac exccssivc invcsrmenr brings in irs wakc
odds wirh ali of rhe orhers. And if rhc transport system or thc sewage sysrcm evıdent ın r ıs c f h
becoınes d d. aluarion of capical for at Jcast somc scgmcnr o r e
docs nor work, rhcn borh labor and capital will be equally put our. Ler us . . escment an ev . d . h 1
dısınv . Th srrucrion interesr 1s also face wıc an exrreme y
conside rwo examplcs rhat, İn spire of their hyporhetical narure, illusrrace ed ınceresr. e con . . h . f
land fb and slumps which milıcares agaınsr r e crearıon o a
rhe comp ex alliances rhar can form and shed somc lighr on the kin<ls of d uncu
• cı:. lr pacrern o ooms
.
. f
•zacion for ehe coherenr producrıon o rhe uı r
b ·ı
problems which urban plannc:rs· rypically face. . blc long-cerın organı k h
vıa . If I bor sinks parr of ics equiry into rhc propcrcy mar er, t en
i ~ I _srart wirh the proposirion that the pr~ce of existing re~o~rccs in rhe huilt
e
nvıronınenr. a . .
fi d ·es savings devalued by such proc;esses, an , t roug
d h h
cnvıronment - and, hence, ehe ratc ol rental approprıatıon - is highly . coo may n ı . . f
ıc, ' . ·zarion and policical acrion , ır may seek ro prorecr ırsel as
sensirivc to ehe cosrs and race of new construccion . Suppose the consrrucrion coınmunıty organı . b
intcrcscs arc badly organized, in a sluınp, or unable ro gain casy access ro
•
well as ır can. n
ı rhis case also we can dıscern a srrucrure to our ur an
, . . .
·ch 1·5 explicable in rcrms of rhe conflıccıng requıremems of rhe
cheap land and rhac ehe race of new consrrucrion is low an<l rlıc cosrs high . prob1ems w h ı
• ı es ~nd facrions as rhey facc up ro rhe problems creared by rhe use
Under rhcsc condicions, those seeking ehe appropriacion of renr possess ehe varıous c ass p. - • • f
power ro incrcasc rheir race of rerurn by raising rcnral on, say, housing . Labor of rhe builr cnvironment as a venr for surplus capıral ın a perıod o
may resist; tcnanr organizarions may spring up and seek ro concrol rhc rare of overaccumulacion (sc:e Chap . 1).
renral appropriation and co keep ehe cost of living down. If rhey succecd, These diınensions of conflicr are cut across, however, by a complerely
renanr organizarions may even drive rhc race of rcrurn on cxisring rcsourccs differenr ser of considerarions which arisc our of rhc facr rhar rhe builr
downward ro rhe poinc where invescmenr wirhdraws encircly (jJerhaps environmenr is composcd of assers rhar arc rypically borh long-livcd and fixed
pro<lucing abandonmcnr). If labor lacks organizarion and power in rhe in spacc. This means ebat we are dealing wirh comınodiries ehac musr be
coınmunity but is well organizcd and powerful in ehe workplace , a rising rare produced and used under con<lirions of "natura! monopoly" in space . it also
of appropriacion may resule in rhe pursuit ofhigher wages, which , if granred, happens rhat, since rhe builr environmcnr is to be conceived of as a complex
may lowcr ehe rare öf profic and accumulaeion . A rarional rcsponse of rhe coınposite commodity , rhc individual clemenrs havc strong "cxternality"
capiealise class undcr ehese conditions is to scck an alliance wirh laboı' ro curb effecrs on orher elcmcnes. We thus find rhat compericion for usc of resourccs
excessive renral apropriations, ro free lan·d for nc\v construccion, and ro sc.:c co is monopolisric compeeirion in space - rhac capiralisrs can coınpece wirh
it rhar cheap (perlıaps cvcn subsidized) housing is builr for ehe laboring class. capiralisrs for advanrageously posirionc:J rcsourccs, rhae laborers can compece
Wc can see rhis sorr of coalirion in accion when large corporarc inccresrs in with laborers for survival chanccs, acccss, and ehe like, and thac land and
suburban locations join wieh civil righes groups in rrying to hreak suburban propercy owners scek ro influcncc ehe posicioning of new elemenrs in ehe built
zoning rcsericcions rhar exclude low-wagc populaeions from ehe suburbs . An environmenc (parricularly transport faciliries) so as to gain indirecc bcncfics.
explorarion of rhis dimension of conflict can rell us ınuch abour rhe srrucrure The b~ic srrucrurc of class and facrional conflices is rhcrcforc ınodi.ficd and in )
of conce~rary urban problcms. son:ıe ın~tances torally rransforıncd inro a scruccure of geog rae hical conflicr
C. • The ~ d case I shall considcr arises our of rhe general dynamic of whı~h pırs laborcrs in ehe suburbs againsc Iaborers in rhe ciry , capiralists in .
capiralisr accurnularion, which, from rime co time, gcnc.:rares chronic th
;:'~;~~cr!al ~ortheast againsc capicalisrs in ehe Sun Bele, and so on .

*
1
ovcrproducrion, surplus real producrive capaciry , and idlc rnoncy capieal ıstınccıvc role and rasks of ehe planncr have ro be undcrstood against
desperarcly in nced of productive outlers . ln such a siruarion, money is casily rhe backg roun d o f t h e srrong currenrs of borh inrerclass and facrional conflict
corne by ro producc long-ecrm invcstmcncs in ehe builc cnvironrncnt, and a on
. the one hand , a neI r h e geograp · ı compecıcıon
. h ıca · · rhac natura! monopolıes ·'
vasc invesrmenc wavc flows inro ehe producrion of ehe builr environınenr, ın space inevieably generarc , on rhc oehcr .
which serves as a vene for surplus capital - such was rhe boom experienced
frorn 1970 ro 197:ı . But ar somc poinr rhe exisrcncc of ovcrproducrion
becornes plain ro see - be ir officc spacc in Manharcan or housing in Dc.:eroir - 111 . TH E PRODUCTION. MAINTENANCE. AND

,
and ehe properry boom collapses in a wave of bankruprcics and "rcfinancings" MANAGEMENT OF THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT
(consider , for cxaınplc, rhc fail of rhe secondary banks associared wieh ehe
London properey market in 197 .'> and rhe dismal pcrformancc of ehe Real llıe builr e · • ·
50c· musr ıncor ) arc rhe necessar use valucs o facilıtare
Esraee lnvcsrmcnr Trusrs in rhe Unired Srares wirh some $1 I bill ion in 1 : ıa 1 rep rqrlucrio
· el h f · ·
tesced and mc· Od a_o !,'[OW t f. rs ovcra_II effü: ıency _and rarıonalıry can be
assers, half of which arc currcnrly earning no rare of reeurn ar ali ). Whar

1
asure ın rcrms o ho,v wcl I ı r funcrıons ın relarionship ro rhese

172 The Uı·baııizaıioıı of Capital
easks. The sophiscicaccd model builders within ehe planning fraeernitv hav
- . e ghene ply of labor In boch cases, failure ro invcsr in rhe righc quantities, at
long sought co translace this conceptıon ınto a search for some i,Qçalizcd
op i11ıımı o timonım for ehe cicy or for regional struccure. Such a search can be
encercaining and can generace ınsig es ınco cerrain typical characeeriscics of
urban struccure, but as an enccrprise it is u·copian, idcalized, and fruitless . A
morc down-co-earch analysis suggests chat ehe indicacions of failure of ehe
builc cnviroment to providc ehe necessary usc values are not coo hard co spot.
The evidence of crisis and of failure co reproduce cffcceively or co grow ac a
sccady race of accumulacion is a clear indicacor of a lack of balance which
rcquircs some kind of corrective aceion .
Unfortunately, "crisis" is a much ovcrused word. Anybody who wancs
anyrhing in this sociery is forced eo shout "crisis" as loudly as possiblc in
order co gec anything done . For rhe undcrprivileged and ehe poor, rhe nisis is
permanent and cndemic. I shall takc a narrower view and define a crisis as a
parcicular conjuncture in wh jçh ehe re producrion of capitalisr socicty is in
jeopardy. Thc _m ain signals arc falling races of profit; soaring unemploym~nr
';nd inflacion; idle produccivc capaciry and idlc moncy capical lacking ~ı
proficablc employmenc; and fınancial instirutional, and policical chaos and
civil strife. And we can idencif rhree wcllsprings ouc of which crises in
capicalisc sociery rypically Aow . •ırs , an imbalanced ourcome of ehe srruggle J
bcrween rhe classcs or faccions o dasses may permir one class or facrion ro
acquire excessive power and so dcsrabilize ehe sysrem (well-crrganized workcrs
can force ehe wage rare up and ehe accumularion race down; finance capiral
may dominare ali orher faccions ok ~ral and engage in unconrrolled
speculacivc binges, and so forrh). ~ . accumularion pushes growth Z
beyond ehe capaciry of ehe suscaining2 ~ al resource base ar ehe same time as
rechnological innovacion slackens. ~ a rendency coward overaccuınu- .J
lacion and overproducrion is omnipresenc in capicalisc socieries because
individual encrcpreneurs, pursuing their own ·individual self-incerest, collec-
cively push ehe dynamic of aggregative accumulacion away from a balanced
growth path (see Harvey 1982, chap. 7). _ . . . .
The particula-r role of ehe built cnvironmenr in all of chıs ı~ compl_ex ın ıcs
decails but simple in principle (see Chap. 1). Failure to ınvesc m ~hose
clemencs in ehe built environmenc which contribure to accuınulacıon _ıs no
differenc in pr_inciple chan ehe fail ur~ of enm:preneurs to invest and rcınvcSr ]
in fixed capital equipmenr. The problem wirh ehe builc environmenc ıs char
much of it functions as colleccive fixed capiral (transport, sewage, _an<l
disposal sysreıns, ere.). So~ y has co be found, cherefore, to en~ure_a_fl::ı
of invescmenc inro ehe builc environmenr and co ensure rhac ındıvıd h
invesrmenr decisions are coordinaced in borh rime and space so tlı~c. t e
. . pro d ucers are. met. B y t he same roken , taılure
aggregarive needs of capıtalısc
co invesc in ehe means of consumpcion for labor ma)' raise rhe wage race,
.:
.
'
On Planııing ıhe Jdeology o/ Plamıİııf!, 173
·-
race civil scrife, or (in ehe worst kind of evenrualicy) physically diminish
1 c e sup · - . . .
rhe right cimcs, and in ehe righc places ca~ be a pr?genıc~r ofa crı~ıs ?f
ccumulacion and growch. Overinvcscment ın rhe buılt envıronmenc ıs, ın
:oncrasc, simply a dcvaluarion of capical which nobo<ly, surely, wclcomes.
And 50 we arrive at ehe general conceprion of ehe poteııtial for a harmonious,
balanced invescment proccss İn ehe builc environment. Anr departure from
rhis pach will encail eicher undcrinvescmcnt (and a constrainc upon ac:cumu-
Jacion) or overinvescmenc (and ehe dcvaluation of capiral) . The problem is co
find some way co ensure chac suc:h a potenrialiry for balanced growch is
realized under ehe condicions ofa capiralisc investmenr process.
The builc environmenc is long-livcd; fıxed in space; and a complex,)
compo~ice commodity , ehe individual c!cmc_ncs of _which may ~e produced, f--
mainraıned, managed, and owned by quıcc dıvcrsc ınterescs. Plaınly, there ıs
~ e,roblcm of coordi narjap, because misrakcs are very difficulc to recoup and
individual producers may not always acc co producc the proper mix of
elemen es in space . The cime srream of benefits to be derivcd also poses some
peculiar problems. The physical landscape creaced ac one poinc in time may
be suiced ro ehe needs of sociecy ar char poinc but become ancagoniscic Jacer as
ehe dynamics of accumulacion and sociecal growch alter ehe use value ·
requiremencs of boch capical and labor. Tensions may rhen arise bccause rhe
long-lived use values cmbedded in ·ehe builc environment cannoc easily be
alcered on a grand scale - wirness ehe problems endemic co many of ehe older
induscrial and commercial cicies in ehe induscrial Norcheasc of ehe Uniced
Scates ac ehe presenr cime .
Invescmenc in ehe built environmenc can be coordinaced wich general social
~equiremencs in one way, or in a mix of chree :
Q Allocacions can be arrivc<l ac rhrough market mechanisms . Elemcncs chat
can be privacely appropriaced under ehe legal relacions of privace properry -
houses, faccories, offices, scores, warehouses, ece. - can be renced and craded .
This secs up ehe price signals chat , under pure compecicive bidding, will
alloc_are land and planc ro ehe besr-paying uses. The price signals also make it
possıble to calculacc a race of recurn on new invesrmencs, which usually
generares a flow of new invescmenr co wherever ehe rare of recurn is above rhar
. be had , g·ıv e n sımı
co · ks, ın. orher seccors of ehe capical market . But ehe
· · ı ar rıs
ınnumerable excernality effeccs and ehe iınporcance of "public good" items
thac cannor . be prıvace
. 1y approprıace
. d - srreers, sidewalks, ere. - generate
fı
_requenc ~arkec failures and imperfeccions so chac in no councry is invescmenc
( ~ he buılt environmenr !efe encirely co coınpecicive market mechanisms .
~ Allocarions may be arrived at under ehe auspices of some hegemonic
conrrolliM inceresc - a land or developer monopoly, conrrolling financial
 174 The U rbaııizatiım of Capiıal
•·ı ı arge-scale
5
inceresrs,
. an<l ehe
. like.
. .This is nor an irrarional move , because
' rocesses whereby scaee powers are exercise<l musc be so fashioned rhat chey,
enrerprısc coordınacıng ınvesrmencs of many <lifferenc cypes can "ince . ı- -
che excernalicics" and chcreby make more racional dccisions from ehe -0rna ı;ı:c
d · . ı vcscor
scan poınt - th~ l~nd granc raıl~oads providc an cxccllenc hiscorical examplc
of such mono:lıscıc con~rol, whılc ~ous~·s Columbia pro"'.ides a conccmporary
ex~~plc. The crouble wıch monopolızacıon and hegcmonıc concrol is chac ehe
prıcın~ syscc:m becomes arcificial (and this can lcad co misallocacions), while
cherc ıs noching to ensure ebat monopoly power is not abused.
~ State incervention is an omnipresenc feacure in ehe produnion, maimcn-
~ ce, and managemenc of ehe built environmenc. 4 The rransporr sysccm _
prıme example of a "narural monopoly" in space - has always posed ehe
problem of privaee gain vcrsus public social benelic, privacc propercy rig hes
versus aggregacivc social nccds. The abuse of monopoly power (which it is ali
coo easy ro accumularc in spacial cerms) has ever brought forth scace
regulacion asa rcsponse . The perva~ive excernalicy effeccs have in ali councrics
le<l to stace rcgulacion of ehe sparial or<ler to reduce ehe risks rhac artaclı ro
long-cerm invcscment dccisions. An<l ehe "public goods" elemencs in ehe
builc environmcnc - ehe srreets, sidewalks, sewer and drainagc syscems, ece.
- which cannoc fcasibly be privacely appropriaccd havc always lx:en <.:rcaced by
<lirccc invcsc·menc on ehe pare of ehe agcncics of ehe scace. The ebeme of
"public improvemenc" has been wric large in ehe hiscory of ali Aıncrican
cıtıes.
The exacc mix of privace market, monopoliscic concr_o l, anJ seare intervcn-
cion and provision has varicd wich time as well as from place co place . ~ h
.[!}ix is choscn or, more Jikely , arrivcd ac by a complex historiçal proccss is nor
chac imporcanr. What is imporrant is chac it should cnsure ehe crcacion ofa
builr environmenc chac serves ehe purpose of social reproducrion ~nd chae it
should do so in such a manncr ehar crises arc avoided as far as is possible.
iV . URBAN PLANNING ı\S PART OF THE INSTRUMENTALITIES Of STı\TE
The propcr conceprion of ehe role of ehe scacc in capiralisr socicry is
concroversial. 5 J shall simply cake ehe view chac scacc insricueions and ehe
• Soınc idea 0 ( rht· cxrenı of hegcmonic conırol cxcrdsc<l by financc capirnl ovcr ıht iane.! ·•~~
properry m,ırkcı can be gainc:d from L. Downic ( 1974); G . Dar_kcr, J .., Pcrınty, "
nd
W·
Stccombe ( 197 _,>; an<l P. ,\ınbrost and R. Colenuıı ( 197 5). Scc also Chaprtr -' ·
4 Tht frcnch urbanists havc workcd on rhis asptcr mosr carcfully as in M . Cascclls arı<I F_.
Godarc.l (197'\) an<l C. G . Pickvance (1976). Sccalso ehe various e~sars in ı\11li/1"d' 7, rıo. -'ı -•
special issuc cnıirlec.l 1'h• Polıtiı,ı/ f.wm,ııı_ı· ,,f Uı·b,111iı111- aıı<l D. H.ırvcy ( 1975).
'Scc, for exaınplc, E . Alrvarcr ( 197.>, 1:96- !08 aııc.1 3:76-8., ); R. J\·lilib.~nd ( 19(,8); N -
Poulanr,as ( 197 _>); anc.l J. O'Connor ( 197.o).
011 PlaımiııK ıhe ldeoloKJ ,,f Plı:ıııııiııg 175
~oo, contribure, insofar as chey can, to ehe reproduccion anJ groweh of rhe
social syscem . Under this conceprion wc can derive ccrcain basic funccions of
ehe cap icalisc scaee .- Ir shou~
ı. help co scabilize an ochcrwise rnther erracic economic and social sysecm
by accing asa "crisis-manager"; .
2. strive to creace ehe condirions for ''balanced groweh ·· anJ a smoorh
3.
process of accumulatiorı ;
coneain civil srrifc and facrional scruggles by ,rcp ression (policc power),
coopracio n (buying off polirically or cconomicall y), or inregracion (trying
ı:'oharmonizc ehe dcınands of warring classes or facrions ).
The scaee can cffcceivc::ly perform ali of chcsc funccions only if İt succceds in
incernalizing wichin irs proccsscs ehe confliceing inreresrs of classcs , facr ions,
diverse geographical g roupings, and so on . A srarc chac is encirel y concrollcd
by one and only one faccion, chac can operacc only repressively and never
chrough inceg racion or coopcarion, will likcly be unsrablc and will Jikely
survive only under condirions chac are, in any case, chronically unscable . The-
social democracic scacc is one rhar can incernalize diverse conlliccing inccrescs
and thac, by means of ehe chccks and balances ic concains, can prevcnr any one
faccion or class from seizing direcc concrol of ali of ehe insrrumenralitics of
governmenr and putting ehem ro irs own direcc use. Yer ehe ~ocial dcmocraric
s ra_re is scill a capicalisr scace in ehe sense rhar iris a capicalisc social order rhae
ıc 1~ helping ro reproduce. Jf ehe inscrumencaliries of srare power are curned
agaınse ehe exiscing social order, chcn we see a crisis of ehe scate, rhe ourcome
of wh_ich . will dccermi ne wherher rhe social order changes or whecher ehe
o~ganızacıon of ehe scarc revercs ro irs basic role of serving sociecal rcproduc-
cıon.
. The urban planner occupies juse onc niche wirlıin ehe cocal complex of ehe
ınstrumencaliries of srace power. Thc incernalizaeion of confl iccing incerescs
and need s · ı·t ı1c. scare r ypıcally
wıc 1111
- puts onc branch of. rhc· bureaucracy ae
loggerlıcads wirh anorher, onc !eve! or branch of governmenc againsr anorhcr
anJ
b even diffcrenc d cparemencs
, , ar odd s wı· ch one ano dıer wirhin ehe samc'
ureaucracy • in whac follows, however, I shall lay aside rhesc <livcrse cross-
currencs of conflicr and seek co absrract some sense of ehe real Jimicaeions
~~ace~ upon ehe urban planncr by vircue of his or her role and rhereby come ro
encıfy more clearly ehe nacure of ehe role icself. To hasecn ehe argumenr
1
a1ong, I shall simply suggesc chat\ ehc e,lanner's rask!is co contribuce to ehe
processes of soc ıa
· l reprod uccıon
. an d cl1ac ın
. so doıng
. ryehe planner ıs
. equıppcd
.
.
wıch powe s . : . l
b . . r vıs-a-vıs r 1e prod uccıon,
. .
maınccnance, anJ managemenc of ehe
uıle envıronmcnr which perınic him or her ro inccrvenc in order ro stabilize
to creare ehe conJirions far "balanced growch ," ro concain civil scrifc and

176 The U1·ha11izaıioıı of Capital
facrional stru lcs b re xession, cooptacion, or ince raci . And co fulfilJ
thesc goals successfully, ehe planning process asa whole (in which ehe planncr
fulfılls only one set of tasks) musc be relatively opcn. This concepcion .
apı=.r und uy 1 sımp
· ıstıc,
r · ınay
b uc a <lown-ro-earch analysis of whac. planncrs
accually do, as opposed to what they or ehe mandarins of ehe plan ·
f . h. k nıng
racernıty r ın r_hey <lo, suggests that ehe concepcion is not far froın thc
mark. An~ ehe hıstory of those who sc~k ro dcpart radically from this fair!y
cırcumscrıbed path suggescs ebat they eıther encounccr fruscration or else givc
up ehe role of planner entircly. 6
V. THE PLANNER'S KNOWLEDGE AND IMPLIED WORLD VIEW
in order to perform ehe nccessary tasks effcctively, thc planner nce<ls to
acquire an understanding ofhow the _built cnvironmenc works in relacionship
to social reproduction and how ehe various faccrs of compctitive, monopol-
isric, and_srare production of the built environmenc relace to one anorher in
ehe comext of oftcn conflicring class and faccional requiremencs. Planners are
chcreforc taughr ro appreciace how everyching relates tO everyching else in an
urban system, to think in terms of costs and benefits (although they may nm
necessarily reso,rt to cechniques of cosr_-benefır analysis), and ro havc some
symparhetic understan<ling of thc problems char facc thc privare producers of
rhc built environmcnt, rhc landlord inten:st, rhe urban poor, rhe managers of
fınancial insricucions, rhe downcown business incerests, and so on. The
accumulation of planning knowledge arises chrough incremenral undersrand-
ings of whac would be ehe "best" confıguration of İnvestmcnc (both spacial
and in terms of quancicative balance) to facilitarc social reproduccion. But the
mosr importanc shifcs in undcrsrandin come in the course of rhose crises in
whıc somcc 1ıng o viously musr be done because social reproducrion is in
jeopardy. · ~thlorderi~_g . Bur İt is the capiralistic defınition of rarionaliry eo which we
The planner requires somcthing else as well as a basic undersranding of
how ehe syscem works from a purely techniça ! srandıı,Qinr. in rcsorring co
tools of rcprcssion, cooptacion, an<l intcgrarion, t'1ı:-,planoer regu ires ju~ ifi-
cation and legirimarion, a ser of e9:,vcrful arguments wirh which ro2 nfronc
warring factional intercsts and class ancagonisms. in striving ro ~ffccc
rı?c'onciliati;;;;, ehe planner must perforce rcsort co the idea of the potentıalıIY
for harmonious balance in society. And ir is on rhis funda mcntal nocıon of
s"'ocial harmony that the ideology of planning is built. Thc planner seeks (_°
incervene ;52 restore "balaou.," b u r rhe "balance" impl jed i c.ı:-1:ıat-wl:ı.icR ıs
'• A ı:ood cxample how planncrs m ighc movc d own such a padı is wrircen up in R.
0(
Goo<lınan ( 19 71).
.
'
.. } :::· On Plamıiıır. ıhı: ldeolor.y of Plaııııiıır. 177
to rcduce civil srrife and co mainrain ehe ite ns for rhe
n ceSsar
, . . .
r dy accumulation of capıral. From __rıme ro tıme, · of caııcsc p lan ners~ ay
~apcured (by CQ]1.Uption, polirical parronag c, or even_ra<lical argumem s) by
e class/faccion or another and thcrc:by la se ebe capacıry co...ıçt as stabılızers
ond harmonizE-5 - bur such ';' condition, rhough endemic, is inherently
t~ and rhe inevitable refo~m mov~menc will ~ost probably sweep . it
away when it is no longer consıstenr wıeh rhe requırements of ehe socıal
order. The role of ehe planner, rhen, ultimarely derives irs justification and
le~itimacy from incervening ro restore t~ar bala~cc -which perpctuates the
exisring social order. And rhe planner fashıons an ı<leology approprıatc ro thc
ro~- )
This does not necessarily mean rhat the planner is a mere dcfc:nder of rhe
srarus q~ The dynamics of accumulation and of sociceal growth are such as
ro create endemic: rensions berwccn ehe built e nvironmenr as is and as ir
should be, whilc ehe evils rhae srem from the abusc of sparial monopoly can
quickly becomc widesprea<l and dangcrous for social reproduccion. Pare of ehe
planner's cask is ro spot both prescnr and furure dangers and co head off, if
possible, an incipienc crisis of ehe builc environment. Jn faet, ehe whole
ciadirion of planning is progressive in ehe sense rhar the planncr's commir-
menr ro the idcology of social harmony - unlcss it is pcrverced or corrupred in
some way - always puts ehe planncr in ehe role of "righter of wrongs,"
"correcror of imbalances," and "dcfcnder of rhe public inreresr'. " The limits of
chis prog ressivc s·rance arc ckarly ser. however, by rhe facr thae the definitions
of ehe public inreres t , of imbalance, an<l of inequiry are set acc:ord ing co the
requiremenrs for ehe reproduct ion of ehe social order, which is, whether we
like ehe term or not, a discinccivd y capicalistic social or<ler .
The planner's knowledge of ehe world cannoc be separared from rhis
necessary ideological commirment. Existing and planncd ordcrings of rhe
builc environmenr are cvaluarcd against some ·notion of !! "rarional" socio-
appeal (Godelier 1972). The principle of racionality is an ideal - the central
core of a pervasive idcology - which irsclf depcn<ls upon the norion of
harmonious processes of social reproducrion under capitalism. The Iimits of
~he planner's undersranding of ehe world arc ser by chis underlying
ıdeoi~gical commitmcnr. in ehe reverse direcrion, rhe plannçr's koow!e,dgc is
used ıdeolo •icallv as both le •irimacion and · ustification for cercain forms of
accion p ı · · ı
berecfıi O ...:,tı ca scrugg les and argumenrs rnay. under rhe planncr's in ucncc,
be re uced-.to....ce.c.hııkal argumcnrs for which a "rarional" soiuric~ can easily
.. found . T hose who do..noc accept such a solucion are chen open ro accack as
unı::_asonable" and "irrat ion<tl..:.' in chis manner hcırh rhc cea l ııı:ıdersranding
of ~he world aod..ı:~deology fuse inco ıfwörlctvie~) 1 do not mea n
to ımp[y rhae ali planners subscribe to ehe sa mc wocld view - rhey manifestly
178 1'he Urbaııization of Capita!
do not, and it would be dysfunctional were they to do so Somc planne .
, h · · • rs arc
,ery ,!_ec nocr~t!c and scck co translacc ali _policical issues inco technical
problcms, w~ıle ot~cr planner_s ~akc a much more policical stam:c. Bue •
;"haeevcr _chcır posmo_ı:ı ehe fusıon of ecchnical underscandings wielı a
ncccssary ıdcology pro<luccs a complcx mix wiehin ehe planning fraecrnie y of
capacıcy to un<lcrscand an<l co ıntcrvene in a realiseic and advancagcous .
and c · c way
• ap_acıcy to rcprcss, coopc, an<l incegrace in a way chac appears juseifiahlc
an<l lcgıcımacc .
VI. CIVIL STRIFE . CRISJS OF ı\CCUMUlı\TION, AND SHll'TS iN THE
PLANNER"S WORLO VJEW
Thc planncr·s world view, define<l as thc nccessary knowledge for appropriacc
ınecrvcncıon and ehe nccessary ideology to juscify and legieimacc accion, has
alcered wich changing circumscanccs. But knowledge and idcology do noc
changc ovcrnighc. Thc concepcs, categories, relationships , and imagcs
chrough which we incerprec ehe world are, so co speak, ehe fixed capical 0 ( 0 ur
'.ncellectual world and are no ınore casily cransformc<l than ehe physical
ınfrascructures of ehe cicy icself. Jc usually cakes a crisis, a rush nf ideas
pouring f~rrh under ehe pressure of_ evencs, radically co changc the planner's
worl<l vicw, and even thcn radical change comes but slowlv. An<l whilc ehe
fun<laıncnrals of ideology - ehe nocion of social harmony _: may scay incacc,
ehe mcanings acrached musc change according co whacever ic is rhac is mır of
bala11ee. Thc hiscory of capicalist sociccies chesc lasc cwo hundred ycars
suggescs, however, ebat ccrcain problcıns are en<lcmic, problerns chac sirnply
will not go away no maccer how hard we cry . Conscqucncly wc find chac ehe
shifcing world view of ehe planner exhibics an acnımulacion of ccchnical
undcrscandings combined wich a merc swaying from side ·co side in
idcological scancc from which ehe planner appears co learn licclc or norhing.
Lec mc ilhıscrace.
The ı.:apitalisc growrh process ·has bccn punccuaced, ac guice regular
incervals, by phases of anıte social tcnsion and civil scrifc . These phases ;ırc
nor hiscorical accidcncs but can he craced back eo ehe fun<lamencal characcer-
iscics of capicalisc societies an<l ehe growch processes encailcd . I havc not space
co elaborace on chis chemc here, bm it is irnporcanc to noce rhac rhe
organiı.acion of work undcr capicalisrn is pre<licaced on a scparacion bcrwecn
"working" and "living," on concrol of work by rhe capicalisc and alicnaced
labor for ehe employee, aııd ona dynamic relacion betwcen ehe wage racc and
ehe race of profic which is founded on ehe social necessicy fora surplus of labor
which m.ıy vary quancicarively accor<ling co time and place. Gencr,ılly
speaking , ic,b ebe caocmcraciııo af low-wa 0 c populacions an<l unem ploy ıncnc
in cichcr time or spacc chac scrs ehe scage for c ivil
Oıı P!anııİıı!{ the !deolııgy of Plmıning 179
The response is some mixcurc of rcpression , coop_c~rion, an~ '. nccgracio_n .
The urban planner's role in ali of chis is co define _ polıcıcs chac facılıcac_e socıal
ı and chac serve co rcescablısh socıal harmon y chrough coopcacıon and
conrro . d . .b . f h 1 .
.
ın~ra
cı· on Considcr for example, ehe sıJatıal ıscrı urıon o t e popu acıon,
. ' .
parricularly of ehe uneınployed and Jo,v-wagc _earners. The revolurmns o
l848, ehe Paris Commune of 1871, ehe _u rban vıolcnce chac_acco~npanıed ehe
great railroad scrikes of 1877 in ehe Unıccd Scaces, an~ Chıcago s celebraced
"Haymarkec affair" of 1886 demonscra~ed ehe rc~olucıonary dangers asso~ı-
~ ed
wich high conccncracions of whac Charlcs Lorıng
. .
Bracc ( 1889) called, ın
ehe 1870s, ehe "dangerous dasses" of sociccy. The problem could be deal
with by a .,EOlicy of dispewl, which meanc chac ways had co be foun<l to
permic ehe poor and ehe unemployed co escapc cheir chronic encrapmcnc in
space. The urban working class had co be dispersed and subjecced co whar)
reformers on boch sides of rhe Adanric called "ehe moral inAuence" of ehe
suburbs (Tarr 197 .1). Suburbanizacion facilicaced b y chça p communirncion
was seen a:S pare of ch~ lucion. The urban planners and reforıners of ehe t ime
e:_essed hard for policies of d ispersal via mass rrn osic fııı-ilic ies such as chose
provided under ehe Cheap Trains Acc of 1882 in Britain a nd ehe screeccars in
ehe Unieed Scaces, while ehe search for cheap housing an-9 means to promote
social seabilicy chrough worki ng-class homeownershi p began in earnesc. in
much ehe same way, planners in ehe 1960s responded to ehe urban riots by
seeking ways co d isperse ehe g hecco by improved t>ransporc relacions,
_eromocing homeow nershi(?, and openi ng up housing opporcunities iı:Lıhf.
~ (alehough chis time round, ehe Viccorian rhecoric of "moral
influence" was replaced by ehe m orc "racional" appeal of "social scabilicy"). i n
ehe process, ehe laboring dasses undoubccdly gain in rcal living sc;ndards
while ehe planner accs as a<lvocacc for ehe poor and ehe underprivileged, raises
theny of social juscicc an<l cquicy, exprcsses moral outrngc ac ehe condicions
of lıfe of ehe urban poor, and reaclıes for ways ro restore social harmony.
:he
th
alt~rnacive to dispcrsal is whac we now call "gil<ling ehe ghecco ," an<l
ıs, too, ısa well-cried racci c in ehe scrugglc co concrol civil scrifc in urban
areas. As early as 1812 , ehe Revercnd Thomas Chalmers ( 182 1-26) raised ehe
speccer ?fa tide of rcvolucionary violcnce sweeping Bricain as working -cla~s
po?ulacıons sceadily concencrared in largc urban a reas. Chalmcrs saw "ehe
prınciple of communıcy · " as ch e maın· b ulwark of· dcfcnse against tlıi s
revolurionary c' d . · · ı 1 .
• ı c - a prı nc ıp e t 1ac soughc co cscablıslı harmony becwecn ehe
c!asses
. around t h e b asıc · ınscıcucıons
· · · o f com munıcy. . Thc prıncıplc
. . also
encaıled a c · . .
• om_mıcmcnc co communıry ım prov cmenc, ehe accempc co inse ili
some
b sense
. ot c··ı,-··c
ı
·
o c ommunıcy ·d bl · ·
prı c capa e of cransgressıng class
~-undarıcs . he church vas chcn ehe: mosc imporcanc insricurion, but wc now
t ı~k of oner ınscrumencal icics also - polieical inclusion, cici zen parcici-
pacı?n, and communicy rnmınitm enc co educacional , recrracional, and ochcr
servıces as well as t h esense o ı· prı.tle ın . neıgh
. b orhoo d whı. c h ınc
. vıcah
. l y mcans
 180
The Urhanizaıiıın o/Capiıal On Planning the Ideolııgy ıı/ Plamıirıg 181
a "betrcr" quality of built cnvironmenc F
and Jane Addams to M d I c· . . rom Chalmers chrough Ocravia l-Iill . d fi cal Jogic of the sorc recenrl y applied to New York or seek to
s . . . .
0 e ıtıes and ci( · · · 1rnpose
• c r a forced raeıonalızarıon of ehe urban system. The pursuıt
concinuous thrcad · of an argum h. h ızen parrıcıpatıon, we have a head a movement 10' _' . . - .- - --
' ene w ıc suggests thar · ı b·ı · cie beautiful ıs replaced by tbe search for the cıty efficıent, thc cry of
restored in per1'od f . sorıa sra ı ıt y can be
s o socıa1 unresr by an · • f .. . Qf e•he · y·ce · replaced by •-rhc slogan .. et.ficıency
. ~ d h
ın governmenr , an r ose
community" and ali that this . actıve pursuıt o_ ehe prınciple of socıa1 ıustı 15 ..
.. . means ın the way of communıry bettermenc . d wieh a rurhless cost-benefit calculus, a ratıonal an<l techno-
socıa 1 ımprovcment _ and . h an planners arme<l . .
l . . agaın, t e planner typically acrs as advocatc · mı· rment to efficiency for efficiency's sake, come ınro rheı r own.
cara yst ın promotıng ehe spirit of community improvemenr. . as m~com .
"Racionalizarion" means, of course, doıng whateve_r must be done ro
Eiv o,~e dOıml ensıon of ehis idea of "improvemenc" is thae of environmcnr,ı .sh ehe condirions fo r a J;ıosicive rate of accumulacıon. Whcn economıc
\ıt~,ı/r qua ~- reestabl ı . , . ,
f
I
bo .mseead . perh aps t h e fi rse fully co recognize that
' was - -
ehe efficicncy
u
ğrowth goes negacive - as it di<l, for example, ın ~:,,_ın ehe early J2;0s , ~r
r mıght be enhanced by providing a compensaeory sense of harmon"
0
. la in 1970 and 1974, rhen ehe reproduccıon of rhe socrnl order ıs plaınl y ın

~
C 1"""'
• J
1
~
<wıt 1 naeure ın the living place ı h h · • •
, a t oug ıt ıs ımporcanr eo recoonize that
7
Olm~tead was building on a rather older tradition. At issue h~re is ti
relatıon eo riature in a most fundamental sense. Industrial capitalism, armc~
'
dou~The ca;r'a t such conj unctures is co find out what ıs wrong an<l to rıght
it. T ~ physical infrasrrucrure of ehe cicy ~ay be congested, inefficienr, and
too costly to usc for purposcs of productıon and exchange. Such barrıers
: g, ( •J,) wıch_ the factory system, organized a work process thar eransformcd the (wll.ich werc obvious ro al! in rhe Progressivc Era, for examplc) ~ e
\ relatıon betwee~ the worker and nature into a mıvcsey of its older artisan sclf. removed, and i_f ehe planner does not willingly help co do so, then ehe
l- G~ Reduced a ehıng, a commodity, a mere "faceor" of producrion, ehe worker
t? escalaeing competition berween jurisdiceions for "developmcnr" at eimes of
C:-1:ı bec_ame alıenated from t~e produn of work, ehe process of pro<lucrion, an<l ge~eral decline will force ehe planncr into aceion if he or she values the rax
(E~ ) ultımately from nacu~c •~self, parrıcularly in ehe induscrial city, wherc, as base (rhis kind of ,-;~peririve prcssure ofcen lcads communieies ro subsidizc
Dıckens (1961) p_u ts ır,_ Nacure was as srrongly bricked oue as killing airs protıts). lf ehe problem lies in rlıe consumprion sphetr - underconsumprion
ı, and gases were brıcked ın." The romantic rcaceion againsr ehe ncw indusrrial or erraric movements in aggregace j;°rsonal bchaviors - rhen thc srare may
\\ order ult imately led in the pracrice of urban <lesign and planning ro ehe seek to ınan age consumpri9n eirher by fiscal dcvices or throug h colleceiviz-
i\ attempt to counter in the sphere ofconsumpeion for whae had becn Josc in rhe ~ The managcment of colleceivc consumpeion by means of the builr'
8
\\ . sphe_re of produceion. The attempe co "bring nature back inco ehe living_ environmenc at such poincs becorncs a crucial part of ehe planner·s rask. If
\\ ; envıronmencs" within the city has been a consistenr theme in planning since ehe problem lies in lack or cxcess ofj nvesemcnt in ebe builr en yiroouıı:nr,
; ! Olmstea<l's time. Yet . it is, in the final analysis , an atrernpr based in wlıar ehen rhc planner must pcrforce set ro work co scimulare invcstrnenr or to .
1
:\ \ Raymond Williams (197 3) calls "an effecrive and irnposing rnysr ificacion," manage and rac ionalize devaluarion with ecchnigues of "e,lanncd şh rinkage,.::._
1, for there is something in ehe relaeion co nature in ehe work process thar can urban reı;u:wal. and even ehe producrio~annİ.!:!& blight" (which amounrs
\ \, i\ never be compensaeed for in ehe consuınpeion sphere. The planncr, armed to nothing more ehan earmarking cercain areas for dcvaluarion) .
\\ wieh conccpts of ccological balance and the notion of harmony wirh narure, I lise ehese various possibiliries becausc it is not always sclf-cvidcnr as co
\::\ \ aces once more as advocare and brings real ga;ns. But rhe rcal solurions ro whae must be done in rhe hcar of a crisis of accumulation. At such
:ı these problems lie elsewherc, in ehe work proccss irsclf. conjunccures our knowlcdge of ehe sysrem and how ir works is crucial for
\l \ . ,_ 7rj Civil srrife and social discontent provide only one set of problems which action, unless we are co be led dangerously near rhe precipice of caraclysmic
: I i r<-<:C.vl'-') ~ he planncr musr addrcss. Thc <lynamic of acı:umularion, wirlı irs periodic depression. And ir is cxac cly ac such poinrs chae rhe worl<l view of ehe planner,
, crises of ovcraccuınulaeion, poscs an enrirely <liffcrenr ser. The crises are not restricted as ir is by an ideological com m irmcnc, appears mose defeceive,
/i 1 accidenral. They are co be viewed, raeher. as rnajor periods of "rat ionaliz- while ehe ideological stancc of thc planner may have co shifr un<ler rhc
1\iı' , ation ," of "shake-outs and shake-downs" chae resrore balance ro an econoınic pressure of events from advocacy for ehe urban poor ro onc dcdi cared ro
'\ıı• i: system eemporarily gone mad . The fact thae crises perform chis rationalizing husincss raeionality an<l efficiency in govern menc.
1i · funcrion is no comforr ro rhose caughr in rheir midsr. And ar such Bur idcologies , -ı have arg ue<l, do nor change rhar easily, nor does our
conjunccures planners muse (j rher simply administer rhe bııılgcc oıcs and knowledge of the world . And so we find, ac eaclı of rhc major rurning poinrs
1
,:;

.\:! 1 plan rhc shrinkagc accord ing e~ the serice requiremencs of an exrcrnally
1
t \\ "'Again, thc Frl'nrh urbanisrs ha,•<.: disnıssl'J th is idea ar lcrı~rh in . for <:xample . E.
7
$«·, for ~x,nıplc, T. l3cnJer ( 1975) :ınJ R. A. Walkcr ( 19 76), Prcteceillc (l975)anJ M. Cam:l ls(l975).
1!,!\\
!ı
iı
'\
 On Plaııııing the hleıılrıgy rıf Plcı1111iııg 183
!82 The Urbaııizatioıı of Capital

in our hisror~, a o-isis rıf, iıleoloSJ,,;, '> Pas.c comın_irıneAtS mJJşt obvi uıısly be orhing more rhan ehe inccrnalization wichin the planning
process wıısf n fi ".'. ' social 11rcssurcs and positions . AnJ chis incernaliz-
aba ndo ncd -2,ccause cI,e oıır pa\\'.IT co underste..ıın and nıns r cercainl racus O con ıc tı ng ' .
lose ~jr ~wer co ,kı.:itimacı,;_and j ujtify (imagine trying ro juscify wha~ appa d 1 · ti ons ch·tr it provoked proved funceıonal, no marrer whar
. 0 an c 1e opposı ' d
acıo h O did The tcchnocracs helped ro define ehe oucer 6oun s
happened to ~e,~• Y?rk City's budgec in ehe mid 1970s by _appcaling to 1
·ndividua1s t ıoug t r . . . 1·
concepts of socıal ıuscıce) . And as ehe pillars of ehe planner·s world vicw slowl\,
1
id b d e at ehe same tıınc as chcv soughc for new ınscrumenca ı-
of what cou e on ' ' . ' . ..
~rumble, ~o the ~rch be8iml.or a new scaffolding for ehe fo çurc. At such ~ /., · co accomp 1ıs
. h Jıspcrsal ·' '
ancl co cscablısh socıal concrol. I he advocaccs for
.
ıuncture, ıt becomes necessary co plan the ideology of planning . jf:- tıes b and ehe ınscrumenralicies rhac chcy devıscd provıdcd ehe
ehe ur an poor ' . .
channe 1s fıor
cooı,cacion and inrc:graeion ar ehe samc eıme as chey pushed ehe
' ' . .
rovide wharever could be provıdeJ bcıng careful to srop shorc at
syseem ro P ' -' " • .. d
Yll. PLANNlNG THI: IDEOLOGY Of Plı\NNING ehe boundarics clıac ehe eechnocrars and "fiscal conservatıves he 1pe co
Those who J)UShed advocacy coo far were eieher forced out or deserted
d efi ne.
By ehe mid-1970s it bccamc clear thac ehe planning inspiracions of ehe I 960s lanning alcogerher and bccame activisrs and policical organizcrs.
had fa<le<l an<l chat mır main cask was co defi~e ncw horiı.ons for planning inro p Judged in rerms of rheir own ideological rhecoric ehe pursuers ?f social
ehe 1980s - new eechnologies, new instrumentalitics, ncw goals ... new juscice failed, much as rhey <lid in ehe Progrcssive Era, ro accomplısh whac
everyching in fact exceJıt a new ideology . Yet if ıny analysis is correce , ehe real chey ser our ro do, alrhough ehe posicion of ehe "dangcrous classes" in sociccy
cask was eo plan ehe ideology ot planning co fit ehe m:w cconomic realitics undoubredly improvec.l somc:whar in ehe iare 1960s. But judged in relarion co
raeher ehan to rneee ehe soda! unrest and civil strife of ehe 1960s . ehe reduccion of civil scrife, ehe recsrahlishmcnc of social conrrol, anJ ehe
Since many of those who inspired us in ehe 1960s are srill aceive, it is "saving" of ehe capiral ise social ordcr, ehe planni ng teclıniqucs and idcologies
useful to ask whae, if anyehing, wene wrong . The _crucial problem of ehe of ehe 1960s were highly successful. Thosc who inspircd us in ehe 1960s can
1960s was civil serife and in parcicular ehe concenrraeed form of it associarcd congratulare rhemselves ona job well done.
wieh ehe urban rioes in ceneral ciey areas. That scrifc had co be concainc<l by Bur condirions changed quice radically in 1969-70. Sragflacion emerged as
repression, 'coopracion, and imegration . in rhis ehe planner , armed wirh ehe mosr serious problem, and ehe negacive growrh race 'of 1970 indicaccd
<liverse i<leologies and a variery of ·world views, playe<l a crucial role. Thc thac ehe fund amenral processes of accumulacion wcrc in dcep crouble. A loosc
dissi<lenrs were encourage<l ro go rhrough "channels," co a<lhere ro "pro- monecary policy - ehe mosr poeenr cool in ehe managemenr of ehe "policical
ccdures lai<l <lown," and soıncwhere <lown char parh ehe planner !ay in wait business eyde" - saw us through ehe cleccion of 1972 . But ehe hoom was
wich a seemingly sophiscicaced cechnology and an intricace un<lerstanding of specularive and heavily dependenc upon a massive ovcrinvescmcnc in ehe
ehe world, rhrough which polirical guescions cou!d be rranslare<l inro land, propercy, and consrruccion seccors tlıat casy money cypically cncour-
rechnical quescions ehat ehe mass of the popularion foun<l hard co un<lerscand . ages. By ehe end of 197 ~ ic was plain thac rhe bu ile environmcnr could absorb
Bur disconrent cannoc so easily be conrrolled, and so ehe orher string co ehe no more '.n ehe way of surplus capiral, and ehe rapid decline in propercy and
planner's bow was ro fin<l ways to <lispersc ehe urban poor, co <livi<le an<l ~on 5 cru~cıon, cogecher with fınancial inscabiliry , rriggered ehe subsequenc
conrrol ehem and co ameliorate cheir con<litions of life (Piven and Clowar<l epressron. Unemploymenc doublcd, real wagcs began ro move downwarJ
1971; Cloward and Pi ven 1974). The management of rhis proccss fol! very ;:der ehe impacr of scverc "labor-disciplining" policies, social programs
much wirhin ehe <lomain of urban planning, and it generaced confüccing . gan ro be savagcly cuc, and ali of ehe gains madc afrer a decade of scruggle
icleological scances and world views widıin ehe planning profession irsclf. Ac ın thc 1960s b h d d . .. "
h Y t e poor an un erprıvılegcd werc rollcd back almosc wirhin
lirse sighr (and indeed ar thc time) it seemed as if planning rheory was
~ e !J'.1ce ofa year. The un<lerlying logic of capicalisc accumulacion asserced
5

fragmenre<l in ehe 1960s as differenr segmcncs of ehe planning fmrerniry ıtself ın ehe ~ f . . .
. fi . orm o a crısıs ın whıch real wagcs diıninished in or<ler chat
move<l accor<ling co rheir posirion or inclinarion co one or ehe othcr polc ~f ın atıon be sta b I· ı ·· d . ". .
re b . ı~e and approprıare condıcıons for accumulacion be
ehe ideological spectruın. Wieh ehe benefit of hindsighr, we can see char rhıs esca lıshed.
b Thd e pressure from ehis underlying logic was fc:lc in ali spheres. Lornl
Thcn: is an imporra ıu connc:crion becwc.-c:n ni sc:s in itkology an<l Icı-:irirnarion - set·, for u gecs had to h 1.~ d h. 1 .
'J
fro . s t towar sca conservacısm an<l ha<l to altcr prioricies
examrk , J. Halx:rmas ( 197 5); fora hiscory of shifring ideolog)' in urban dcvelopnıcnı. scc
(of:ns~cıal pr~g:ams eo program~ ro scimulace and encourage developmcnc
Y 5 ubsıdıes and rnx benefıcs) . Planners calke<l grimly of rhe "hard,
R . A . Walkcr ( 1976) .
.

t
184 The Urbaniztılirm of Capital

rough dccisions" chac !ay ahead. Thosc chac soughr

· lf • '
.· ı · ·
soua ıusrıce as an cnJ •
ıts~- ı~ the 1960s gradually shifccd rhcir ground as rhcy began co argue eh\~
socıal ıuscıce rnuld besc ~e achicved by cnsuring cfficicncy in govcrnmcn~
Thosc thae sought ccologıcal _baiancc and conscrvacion in irs own righc in eh~ 8
1960s bcgan to appcal co prıncıplcs of rarional anJ cfficient ınanagcmenc of
our rcsourccs . The ~cchnocrars began ehe scarch for ways ro define ınore
racıonal pattcrns of ınvescmcnr in ehe buile environmcnr, co cakulaee coscs
The U rbanization of Capital
and benefies more finely than ever. Thc gospel of efficiency came ro rcign
supreme .
AH of ehis prcsupposes rhc capacicy to accomplish a transforınarion of
idcological balancc within ehe planning fraeernicy - a rransformarion that
curns oue co be almose idenrical co ehae wh_ich was successfully accomplisheJ
durıng the Progressivc Era. le can, of course, be done . Buc ic eakes efforr and The Janguage of any quescion has ehe awkwar<l habir of concaining ehe
fairly sophiscicaeed argumcne ro do İt. And ehe eransformaeion is made tlıac elemencs of ics own rcsponse. For chis reason 1 have always aecache<l parcicular
much easicr bccause ehe fundameneals of idcology remain inracr . The imporcance eo Marx's commenc chac ••frequencly ehe only possiblc answer is a
commicmene eo ehe ideology of harmony wichin ehe capicalisc social ordcr cricique of ehe quescion and ehe only possible solucion is co negare ehe
remains ehe srill poinc upon which ehe gyraeions of planning ideology eurn . quescion" (Gmndrisse. 127). The cecrnal skepcicism of Marxian sciencific
Bur if we step aside and reflccc awhile upon ehe eor'cuous rwiscs and curns in endeavor rcsides precisely in chae mechodological prescripcion.
our hisrory, a shadow of doubc might cross our minds. Perhaps ehe mosc The quescion I began wich, ınore chan a decade ago now, was roughly rhis :
imposing and effeccivc myscificarion of ali lies in ehe presupposicion of can we derive a cheoreeical and hiscorical underscanding of ehe urban process
harmony ac ehe stili poine of ehe turning capicalisc world. Perhaps chcre lies ar under capicalism our ofa scudy of ehe supposed laws of morion ofa capicalise
rhe fulcrum of capicalisc hiscory ·noc harınony but a •social relacion of mode of produccion? J quickly bccaı'ne convinced chac rhe answer was ycs,
doıninacion of capirnl over labor. And if we pursue ehis possibilicy, we mighc provided chose laws could be specified more rigorously in cer'ms of cemporal
comc co underscand why ehe planner seems doome<l co a life of pcrpecual and spacial dynaınics . But was chis ehe righc quescion) A decade of rhinking
frusrrarion, why ehe high-sounding ideals of planning cheory arc so fre- and wrieing on ehe subject poincs ro a reform~lacion. 1 now ask, how does
quently cranslaee<l inro grubby praccices on ehe ground, how ehe shifts in capical become urbanized, and whac are ehe conscqucnces of chac urbaniz-
world view and in i<leological scance are social pro<luccs rachcr chan freely arion? The answer co chac quescion has, 1 submic, profound implicaeions for
chosen . And we might even come ro see ehac iris ehe commicmenc ro an alien underseanding ehe fucure of capiealism as well as ehe prospeccs for transicion
i<leology which chains our choughc and under·s canding in ordcr ro lı::gieiınatc a to some alcernacive mode of produccion.
social praccicc ehac preservcs, in a deep sense, ehe <loıninacion of capical ovcr Bur lee me begin wich some rernarks on how wc mighc concepcualize
Jabor. Should wc reach ıhtıt conclusion, chen we would surdy wimess a urbanizacion in ehe concexc ofa prcdoıninancly capicalisc rnode of produceion .
markedly differenr reconscruccion of rhe planner's world view chan we are
currencly seeing . We mighc even begin ro plan ehe reconserucrion ofsociecy ,
1. THE PRODUCTION OF URDANIZATJON UNDER A
inscead of mcrely planning ehe idcology of planning.
CAPJTAI.IST MODE OF PROüUCTION

!h~ use values necessary to ehe reproducrion of social life under capicalism arc
hasıcally produced as comrnodiries wiehin a circulacion process of capical ehac
fo~ ehe au_g~encaei~n of exchangc values as _irs primary goal. The scandard
m of chıs cırculacıon process can be symbolızed as follows :

iW-c {~ip ·· ·P ... c'-M+ 6ın-ecc.

185