California State Polytechnic University, Dept. of Urban and Regional Planning
URP 337 Planning Public Infrastructure, Spring 1999
Gwen Urey, extension: 2725, gurey@csupomona.edu

Reaction Paper 3

due Wednesday 2 June 1999, 4 p.m. 
Purpose: To think about public space in Southern California.

Tasks:

  1. Read: "The Underproduction of Public Space," and "Killing the Los Angeles River," from "How Eden Lost its Garden," Chapter 2 of Ecology of Fear, by Mike Davis (1998).
  2. Write:  An essay addressing the following questions:

    3.  
    1. What does Davis mean by the underproduction of public space?
    2. Davis is writing about events in the 1920s and 1930s, but as you may have gathered, is as critical of events in more recent times.   He would say that public space continues to be underproduced as development expands into outlying areas.  What do you think?  Why do you think that?
    3. (optional) How should public space be produced in the 21st century?
Format: Two pages, double-spaced, typed.
Wednesday, 2 June, 4 p.m. submit 2 copies.

Evaluative Criteria:
A: A superior paper that is well-organized, has well-structured thoughts and is thorough; it addresses all parts of the assignment. The writer has provided specific examples and details. This paper has been spell-checked; punctuation and capitalization have also been checked. It is a final draft.

B: A very good paper that is weak in some aspects, such as not thoroughly addressing the assignment; it is not as clearly organized in thought and compositions as the superior paper. While it has been checked for mechanical errors, there are some inconsistencies which may detract from the quality of the paper.

C: A good paper that is an adequate or satisfactory response, but it is weaker than the very good or superior paper in several ways. For example, it may not clearly support with example(s) statements that are made. This paper is marred by "awkward" or grammar, mechanical errors, and poor word use.

D: A minimally acceptable paper. It barely addresses the assignment. The writing is less than competent and shows problems in several areas. The paper, however, is strong enough to earn a passing grade.

F: A failing paper. There is very little understanding of the assignment. It has major deficiencies in organization, development, sentence/section structure, word choice, grammar, and/or mechanics.