Compare New York and Brooklyn Urban Growth and Planning

Manhattan and Brooklyn both had a different trajectory of growth and development but Brooklyn didn’t fully begin to develop in a faster way. Urban development in Manhattan was much more planned in compare to Brooklyn’s development. Manhattan’s location and land help a lot with its fast development over Brooklyn.

New York development started with the Dutch settles in 1664 who began their urbanization in lower Manhattan known as New Amsterdam. At this time pathways and roads were created unorganized and unplanned until 1810. After the war in 1797 when the city went into a huge expansion the first grid was created. The city recovered quickly from the war, and by this time it was one of the nation’s most important ports. As the city grew in 1811 the first grid was stablished of streets and avenues for the undeveloped parts of Manhattan. This grid helped Manhattan’s development by creating organized streets and use of lots to be more efficient.

Manhattan had a better land to grow faster than Brooklyn. The city already was one of the most important ports, the cotton economy played a particular role in its development. Southern planters sent their crop to the east river docks, where it was shipped to the English industries cities. Then textile manufacturers shipped their finished goods back to New York.  The Erie Canal was completed in 1825, New York City was the trading capital of the nation and by 1837 the construction on the Croton Aqueduct provided clean water for the city’s growing population. With all these new implementations growth was inimitable.

While Manhattan was developing Brooklyn was already behind its development, without a grid plan and small port it was very difficult to grow fast.  Its location and land didn’t help, with an unstable and unorganized land, developing and growth was very difficult. But with the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn development start to grow fast.