Tag Archives: Robert Moses

Caro – Power Broker || Response

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Considering how much Robert Moses did for New York, I have personally never heard of his name until last summer. During that time, many of my friends went to Robert Moses State Park, which is a very clean beach (compared to Jones Beach or Long Beach). I thought Robert Moses was probably another politician who did something remarkable for the city. Little did I know, he physically shaped New York in a way no one thought was possible during his time. In fact, he shaped the nation with the highway system and recreational parks. I was shocked at the amount of projects he was able to accomplish and put under his belt.

When I read about all the highways, parkways, bridges, and parks Robert Moses built, my jaw literally dropped. As a native New Yorker, I have been on most of them – the Long Island Expressway, the Van Wyck Expressway, the Clearview Expressway, the Throgs Neck Expressway, the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, the West-Side Highway, the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, and so many more. I never knew that he was the brainchild of all of this. I cannot imagine how New York would survive or function without any of these projects. Without a doubt, society would be very different. Robert Moses certainly looked way beyond the future during his time.

Not only did these projects incur a high monetary cost, they also affected a great number of people. Where Robert Moses wanted to construct a park or highway, residents of that area would become displaced. This certainly brought about disputes as to whether or not he was doing the right thing. Nonetheless, I agree with what he did. By displacing these people, he made it possible for these major works to become reality. He did it for the better of society. Displaced residents would be able to have a better quality of life with the availability of these efficient projects.

This reading also reflected a lot about Robert Moses’s personality. He is a go-getter and very ambitious. Going for whatever he wants, he makes sure that nothing gets in his way. An example would be when the newly elected Mayor did not give Moses his position. Moses threatened to resign, which was a method he used in many instances during his life. He certainly came off as an adamant and persistent person in my opinion, certainly in a good way.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this reading because it informed me a great deal about Robert Moses and what he accomplished. Today, we take for granted all these highways and bridges to get from Point A to Point B. This reading certainly made me realize how different life would be if we lacked these things. If I could ask him a few questions, I would ask, “What inspired you to do so much for society and look way into the future?” and “Did your personality bring about a lot of enemies?”.

The Power Broker- Response

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There always seems to be a conflicting view of Robert Moses and his legacy of building New York City. Although he evicted hundreds of thousands of people and displaced them, he did build over 600 playgrounds, and numerous of new apartments, parks, beaches, highways, and bridges. No matter what people think of Moses, there is no doubt that he is a ruthless, power-driven, accomplished man. Personally, I am just quite shocked how much power Moses was able to obtain. I feel in present day, there is no one like him, or anyone who can become him. For instance, Moses was able to threaten Mayor Wagner that he would resign his position, which made Wagner oblige to Moses’ wishes. In a way, I admire his ability to control and influence.

What I wonder is, what will New York and the rest of America be like without Robert Moses? By building highways/expressways and bridges, Moses did connect cities and states together. Furthermore, expansion was able to occur (i.e. expansion of different living opportunities to suburbs). In addition, although people like Jane Jacobs do not think Moses beautified New York in any way, the parks and beaches that he developed can be argued to add aesthetics to places. At least he did not only focus on buildings and infrastructures.

In Caro’s reading, it is mentioned that Moses was able to keep the public from finding out what he was doing. People did not know about his personal life nor did they always know what he was doing in his job (what his plans were). Today, this would almost be impossible. Because Moses was able to “hide” from public eye, he was able to get away with his projects. However, nowadays, there would be much scrutiny and what Moses was doing would be categorized as “off-the-books.” This can also explain why there is no other “Robert Moses” in present day.

Also, Moses did not let anyone influence him and did not make any compromises. This is important in affecting his projects as well because it means one decision, one thought, one idea. Moses’ projects will be accomplished because he only has himself to listen to rather than waiting to get approvals from other people. If Moses had to ask others for acceptance, and if they were not satisfied, he would have to change his plans. With Moses being the only one who made decisions and actions, he was able to work on and complete his projects quickly. Similarly to the previous paragraph, nowadays, this would not like happen. There are more people/committees one has to go through in order to carry out a project. In my opinion, in present day, because of that, it takes longer to complete anything.

Overall, it is fascinating how one business-architect can have as much power as a politician, and even more at times. He was even able to win against President Franklin Roosevelt. Moses was the very few, or possibly the only one, who was able to “get away” with negatively affecting those who are in the lower social class (i.e. people he evicted). This shows that with power, one can do anything. Moses is the only one who is the best at what he dose, which puts him at an advantage as well. Can another Robert Moses rise? Probably not under today’s circumstances–that are full of stricter and harsher regulations.