The Radburn Idea
This chapter examines Clarence Samuel Stein's interrelated community design, with particular emphasis on his Radburn Idea. It first takes a look at Stein's early large-scale unbuilt projects that demonstrate his emerging talent in site design, such as Sunnyside Park in Shelton, Connecticut, with Kohn in 1920; Fort Sheridan Gardens with Ernest Gruensfeldt; and the Spuyten Duyvil Housing Development in the northwest Bronx in 1923. It then considers Stein's development of Radburn to illustrate the benefits of communitarian regionalism: Radburn was conceived as a “complete town” for twenty-five thousand that would include “all the other facilities and conveniences which go to make for comfortable, pleasant living.” The chapter also discusses Stein's innovations in site design at Chatham Village in Pennsylvania; his design of Phipps Garden Apartments in New York City and the Wichita Art Institute; and his partnership with John W. Harris for the new town of Maplewood near Lake Charles, Louisiana.