RECORD OF TESTIMONY AND STATEMENTS IN RELATION TO 133 



NECESSITY FOR DISTRICTING PLAN 



It reduces the amount of traffic and thus makes the burden of reserving" a 

 street for play purposes much less. In the second place it makes possible 

 the reservation for play purposes of residence streets which are near those 

 on which the children are living. In short, it makes possible the reservation 

 of play streets without burden to traffic and near where they are needed. 



Streets the only playground for most children 



Certain types of stores, namely, those where much loafing is done, have 

 a very undesirable moral effect on the children living nearby. I do not 

 think, however, that the restriction of residence streets against stores will 

 make much difference on that score, because the stores will not be very far 

 away. The corner drug store will not be very far away, even in a residential 

 district. So I think we cannot assume that it will reduce very much the 

 harmful influences that come from some stores. 



In a locality that is built up with apartment houses and business places 

 covering from 70 to 90 per cent of the land, where there are no play- 

 grounds, the children are compelled to play in the streets. About 90 per 

 cent or more of the children in the crowded districts play in the street now, 

 if they play outdoors at all, during the seasons when most of the public 

 playgrounds are closed. We feel that it is vital that children should have 

 places in which to play. Ten per cent or more of the school investment in 

 New York City is wasted because children outside of school hours or after 

 school years form habits which waste what they get in school. A very 

 lengthy investigation would be necessary to find the exact amount of the 

 educational loss in this way. Studies which have been made in cities 

 throughout the country show that about 40 per cent of the children, even 

 in cities only one-tenth as big as New York, who are outdoors outside of 

 school hours, are idle because there. is no place for them to play. Children 

 who are doing nothing are not developing habits of push and initiative that 

 they must develop in order to use their school training. The wholesome use 

 of out of school time is a big asset to any city. 



Dedicating every part of the city to apartment houses would have two 

 effects. First, it would reduce the amount of open space, and second, it 

 would increase the number of children per acre. It would reduce the 

 amount of open space because it would be possible to build up to 70 per cent 

 of the lot. Then, by piling up the homes, the number of children per acre 

 would be very largely increased. Thus the play conditions would become 

 more and more acute and more and more difficult to handle. I should not 

 be advocating play streets if we could afford anything else, but we cannot 

 afford enough play places at present to reach all the children. We must 

 provide some temporary expedient. 



Tenement yards not desirable playgrounds 



The rear yards provided by the Tenement House Law are neither 

 adequate nor desirable as play spaces. The noise from the playing in such 

 narrowly enclosed areas would be intolerable. One great problem which we 

 have to face, even in a reserved street, which is much larger than the tiny 

 back yard wells you have described, is how to overcome the noise of play. 



Minimum play space standards 



In London the school board is reported as having set apart a minimum 

 of 30 square feet of play space for each child as a standard. Most 



