Robert Moses
Robert Moses (1888–1981) was an American urban planner who shaped New York City and its surroundings for decades, building highways, bridges, parks, and public housing.
His name has become shorthand for top-down infrastructure planning that prioritizes automobiles over public transit and displaces poor and minority communities: The project has a Robert Moses quality—grand but brutal.
Expert overseeing construction projects
- Long IslandNYC's suburban peninsula
- World's FairInternational industrial and cultural exhibition
- Lincoln CenterNYC arts campus
- UN headquartersInternational diplomacy's central building
Shea Stadium · public housing · slum clearance · Title I · borough · commissioner · parks department · public authority
Major intercity roads
- expresswaysHigh-speed limited-access roads
- bridgesStructures spanning obstacles
- tunnelsUnderground hollow pathways
- parkwaysLandscaped scenic roadways
overpasses · interchanges · arterials · causeways · roadwork · construction · concrete · asphalt
Power to enforce obedience
- dominanceSuperior influence over others
- controlAuthority to direct
- unelectedNot chosen by voters
- public authorityBody wielding state power
political machine · patronage · leverage · centralization · unaccountable · autonomy · dealmaking · backroom
Artificial basins for aquatics
- playgroundsOutdoor spaces for children
- recreationRefreshment through leisure
- state parksGovernment-managed natural areas
- public beachesFreely accessible shoreline areas
picnic areas · Flushing Meadows · Fire Island · waterfront access · landscaping
Advocate for racial division
- exclusionaryTending to bar others
- racistOne prejudiced by ethnicity
- displacementRemoval from usual location
- low bridgeOverhead structure, limited clearance
discrimination · car-centric · bulldozing · opposition · protests · redlining · inequity · Jane Jacobs
master builder
Expert overseeing construction projects
- Long IslandNYC's suburban peninsula
- World's FairInternational industrial and cultural exhibition
- Lincoln CenterNYC arts campus
UN headquarters · Shea Stadium · public housing · slum clearance · Title I · borough · commissioner · parks department · public authority · eminent domain
highways
Major intercity roads
- expresswaysHigh-speed limited-access roads
- bridgesStructures spanning obstacles
- tunnelsUnderground hollow pathways
parkways · overpasses · interchanges · arterials · causeways · roadwork · construction · concrete · asphalt · automobile
authority
Power to enforce obedience
public authority · political machine · patronage · leverage · centralization · unaccountable · autonomy · dealmaking · backroom · strongman
swimming pools
Artificial basins for aquatics
- playgroundsOutdoor spaces for children
- recreationRefreshment through leisure
- state parksGovernment-managed natural areas
public beaches · picnic areas · Flushing Meadows · Fire Island · waterfront access · landscaping
segregationist
Advocate for racial division
- exclusionaryTending to bar others
- racistOne prejudiced by ethnicity
- displacementRemoval from usual location
low bridge · discrimination · car-centric · bulldozing · opposition · protests · redlining · inequity · Jane Jacobs · Greenwich Village
- city historycity history, city archives, city development, urban development, historic districts
- Long IslandLong Island, Huntington, Hempstead, Montauk, Babylon
- New York historyEllis Island, Tammany Hall, Erie Canal, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park
- Long Island ParksCedar Point, Fire Island
- urban plannerscity planners, Ebenezer Howard, Jane Jacobs, William Penn
- BronxSouth Bronx, Yankee Stadium, Bronx Zoo, Riverdale, Belmont
Robert MosesJane Jacobs
grassroots organizing · public accountability · citizen engagement