Conclusions and Outlook
Residential development during the 1950s and 1960s
permanently
transformed
the social and physical identities of Greenbelt, Maryland. What was once
an experimental community, intrinsically tied to its founding ideals,
developed into a common American suburb. This resulted from a direct
neglect of the initial goals that embodied the concept of the planned
community. The new developments emphasized class exclusion and the
rejection of the basic principles that characterize a "green community."
Both physical and social elements of the original plan of the city were
discarded in favor of development and upward mobility. Greenbelt was
thereby stripped of its experimental nature and the effort to provide a
solution to America's social situation was effectively terminated.
Residential as well as commercial development
have both worked in
tandem to dissolve the ideals of Greenbelt. The city today is similar in
appearance to most American suburbs. Large commercial developments and
high-rise office towers currently characterize the city . Due to this
overwhelming development, the city will never be able to salvage its goals
and promote Greenbelt as the epitome of community planning. The future
only presents the advent of more development and increased density in the
city as well as the complete redefinition of the image of Greenbelt as a
community.
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Founding Ideals
Growth
Analysis