CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY FINE ARTS LIBRARY Cornell University Library NAC 6827 .G557N78 3 1924 024 415 915 Cornell University Library The original of tinis book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924024415915 It should be understood that this report is not a recommendation by those responsible for its publication. It has been the intention merely to present to our citizens the report prepared by Mr. Nolen after his indepen- dent study of our problems. W. M. Beard L. Best Benj. F. Blaib W. A. Bbiggs L. J. Buckley E. L. R. Caumits B. F. Carter H. S. Chapmait J. W. Coon Chas. Cluthe R. B. Cowing, Jr. L. H. Davet W. S. Fairchild H. J. Frost Frank Goodwillie F. G. Hart CONTRIBUTORS J. Wilson Hart Clemens Hebscrel A. HiNRICHS W. H. HODGINS Geo. W. Httlsart H. L. Johnstone R. L. Johnstone J. W. Knight W. A. Little Edward Lord Wilson D. Lyon G. W. Mead S. C. Merwin Geo. a. Minasian E. P. Mitchell T. M. Nevius H. C. Newell J. W. PlERSON J. B. Phillips W. E. Powers J. F. Price F. K. PULSIFER N. Russell F. H. Schmidt F. H. Skeele J. D. Slayback W. M. Strong H. H. Uhler W. F. Upson R. R. Williams Including the following COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION E. E. Bell A. R. Brewer E. N. Bristol H. G. CORDLEY C. Gehrmann RoscoE Hart L. HiNRICHS Peter McEwan J. H. Mylod G. W. Reynolds Wm. H. Saybe D. H. Standish Arthur J. Lockwood, Chairman. o o u H a R 6 GLEN RIDGE THE PRESERVATION OF ITS NATURAL BEAUTY AND ITS IMPROVEMENT AS A PLACE OF RESIDENCE BY JOHN NOLEN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT GLEN RIDGE, NEW JERSEY MCMIX 65'A7 A/7^ INTRODUCTORY NOTE Mr. John Nolen, the author of this report, has won a high place among landscape architects. In dealing with the problems of communities rural in character or surroundings he has been notably successful. When, therefore, the Municipal Art Commission of Montclair recently employed him to prepare plans for them, an easy opportunity presented itself to obtain for Glen Ridge the benefit of his suggestions. There was no time to form a regular public organization ; so a few citizens of the borough, hastily assembled, took upon themselves the responsibility of engaging Mm. Some of the rec- ommendations he here makes are new; some merely confirm the wisdom of action already begun ; for all of them he furnishes illuminating reasons. We should realize that, although Glen Ridge is not a large place, our position is similar to that occupied a generation ago by communities now grown large, and that by taking thought Ave may still avoid many of the difficulties and much of the expense that larger places must now meet. The time has come when we should understand that skill and foresight should control what so frequently has been left to chance; that there is a real art in the making of a town ; and that it behooves this generation to master and practice it. With a desire to awaken such interest in our borough as to lead to concrete achievements this report is presented to its people. The Publication Committee Tony's Brook. Glen Park CoTiNTY Bridge at Ridgewood Avenue GLEN RIDGE Glen Ridge occupies a site which is naturally well adapted for suburban residence. Furthermore the street plan has the charm of irregularity, and the Borough has all the ordinary public facilities of modern town life, — paved and shaded streets, sidewalks and sewers, an ample supply of pure water, gas, electricity, and other conveniences. To the natural loveliness of its situation. Glen Ridge has added much by an enlightened public pohcy and a united civic spirit that are seldom found in such a highly developed form in so small a place. Foresight, generous public expenditure, and wisdom have given to the present generation and insured to the future certain public advantages of very great value. In the first place, the most characteristic and most beautiful natural feature of the Borough — The Glen — ^has been nearly all secured for a public park. This is a valu- able asset, one that could not be duplicated. Yet its character and situation are such that in private hands it probably would have become an eyesore. The people of Glen Ridge cannot be too highly com- mended for making this acquisition in time. Then the Borough, acting, I presume, with the railroad officials, has given what appears to be, on the whole, the best locations for the railroads and the stations. There are only two grade crossings within the borough Glen Ridge Club House Lackawauna Station, Glen Ridge GLEN RIDGE 9 limits, the stations are central and their surroundings attractive. There has also been displayed a tenacity and foresight as fine as it is unusual in controlling certain outdoor features which tend in a high-grade residence town to become nuisances. I refer particu- larly to unsightly poles and wires, ill-placed and in- appropriate stores, apartment houses and tenements. Other illustrations of Glen Ridge's discriminating attention to pubhc matters could be cited, especially in the support given to education, the Borough schools possessing at once the most marked merits of both public and private equipment and teaching. The pres- ent movement in Glen Ridge, therefore, cannot prop- erly be called an awakening, as in the case of some other places; it is simply a new expression or a new application of a sound method of procedure heretofore followed with such striking success. THE BOROUGH CENTRE The collective life of Glen Ridge is very conveni- ently and appropriately centralized at the intersection of Bloomfield and Ridgewood Avenues. These are the two most important streets — the former the main artery for electric cars and through travel to Newark in one direction and to Montclair, and over the Mountain, in the other; the latter, the most important residence street and pleasure drive. On one corner of this inter- section is the attractive Lackawanna Railroad Station, containing the Post Office, and, adjoining it, the Li- brary ; opposite, on the other side of Ridgewood Avenue, 'The Foubth Corner" A SxjBUBBAN Inn GLEN RIDGE 11 is a continuation of the Glen Park with the Glen Ridge Club House near by ; diagonally from the Station is the Pubhc School, a modern and complete educational plant covering all grades from' the kindergarten to the high school. The fourth corner is at present privately owned and, although not now out of harmony with this natural centre of the Borough life, it may at any time hecome so. There should be no uncertainty as to its development and future; no graver mistake could be made than to leave it to chance. For it is quite pos- sible that a use might be made of this corner for private ■or selfish reasons that would seriously conflict with the pubhc good and destroy forever the essential character and attractiveness of the Centre. Nothing, therefore, is clearer than that this corner should be owned or con- trolled by the pubhc. Just what the best use of it w^ould be is not so clear, nor so important. A small hotel or inn, a club house, a Borough Hall, a building for art, education or recreation interests, — ^the site might be properly used for any one of these purposes or some- thing akin to them. There need be no fear as to a use for the property; the developments of the next decade in Glen Ridge will bring forth demands for many such sites. Therefore, I unhesitatingly advise the acquisition of this property, for I am of the opinion that the public ownership or regulation of its use is as important as any public improvement now under con- sideration in Glen Ridge. Some of the features proposed as a method of utilizing this northwest corner of Bloomfield and Ridge- Suggestions for a Rural Store Center HERMAN 5TREET Ground Plan of the AsovEi The Stores Face an Open Court GLEN RIDGE 13 wood Avenues — a Borough Hall, or an Inn, for ex- ample — will have to be provided for sooner or later, and if they are not placed on the property referred to, they should be located somewhere convenient to the so-called Centre. It has been suggested that a small hotel be built on the corner referred to, a store centre on Bloom- field Avenue just beyond it, and a Borough Hall (and fire house) on the south side of Bloomfield Avenue opposite Herman Street. This program appears sound from the point of view of convenience, and, if undertaken by those who have the pubhc welfare at heart it promises to protect from injury the beauty of the Borough, — an essential element of its prosperity. At present there are no stores whatever in Glen Ridge, but it is only a question of time when an increased population will demand them. These village stores should be given a village aspect by surrounding them with trees and grass ; they should be built of permanent material, convenient in arrangement, attractive in design. If thus conceived and executed, in harmony with the homes of Glen Ridge, this provision of certain indispensable social necessities may actually add to the charm as well as the convenience of life in the Borough. The proposed double tracking of the Lackawanna Railroad will not only be an important improvement in itself, but it will also give opportunity to make at least four other important changes: (1) The provision of very much more adequate facilities for carriages in the approach to and departure from the Station. At present there is no proper place except the street for LiBBABY Building and Boeough Offices -J -J 5 l^DGDWOOD AVE^. Plan for Increasing the Space for Carriages at the Station and^ Providing an Approach from Woodland Avenue GLEN RIDGE 16 either public or private vehicles to stand, and room for only a single carriage or automobile to deliver or receive passengers at one time. This situation is al- ready intolerable and will become steadily worse unless proper action is taken. It is desirable, I should almost say imperative, that the property back of the Library building, which fortunately is still available, should be utilized in connection with the Railroad property, and a driveway opened to Woodland Avenue. The easy circulation of traffic will thus be provided for, as well as a convenient stand for both public and private vehicles. (2) The widening of the bridge over Ridge- wood Avenue. While the Avenue has a width of eighty feet, the bridge at this point — naturally the most used part of its entire length — contracts it to forty feet. The new bridge should be the full width of the Avenue and decidedly more attractive in character. (3) The Lackawanna grade crossing at Hillside Avenue should be ehminated. Hillside Avenue is an important thoroughfare and the changes required by the double tracking of the Railroad should include the most satisfactory solution possible of the problems involved in a rearrangement of grades at this point. (4) The dangerous narrow passage under the railroad at Clark Street should be made the full width of the street. In addition to these improvements others of less im- portance, such as a trolley waiting station at Bloom- field and Ridgewood Avenues, should be included in the re-design of the neighborhood. One word of warn- ing needs to be given. In all these changes along the Dangehops Grade Crossing at Erie Station Grade Crossing Easily Abolished GLEN RIDGE 17 Railroad, great care should be taken to protect as far as possible the integrity of the Glen and the beauty of this dominant park feature of the Borough. It is appropriate to refer here to two improvements on the Erie Railroad which the growth of Glen Ridge has now made imperative, viz., the removal of the grade crossing at the Erie station and the construction of a bridge over the railroad at Sherman Avenue. From the point where Wildwood Terrace now inter- sects the railroad, the topography and street grades happen to be such that it would be easy and inexpen- sive to readjust streets and railroad so as to remove this awkward and dangerous crossing. So simple is the change that it is surprising that it has not already been made. The need of a bridge at Sherman Avenue is equally urgent. North and south communication, the long axis of the Borough, becomes daily more and more important. The route suggested for a North and South trolley line (see page 23), and the location of a public school on the property at Sherman and Bay Streets, make it necessary for the Borough to require from the Erie Railroad the construction of a bridge in the immediate future. STREETS AND ROADS A CRITICAL examination of the streets and roads of Glen Ridge, while it reveals much that is praiseworthy, reveals also in many cases the need of change and im- provement. It should be clear that every decision with regard to the street is important, — its location. HiLLCREST Road Hillside Avenue GLEN RIDGE 19 its width, its subdivision into roadway, planting strip for trees, and sidewalk; its grade, its fixtures. More- over, these decisions, with few exceptions, concern the general pubUc far more than the individual or group of individuals who happen at the time to reside on the particular street under consideration. Therefore the settlement of these matters should usually rest in pubhc hands and the decisions should be made primarily with regard to public interests. Even in so small and homogeneous a place as Glen Ridge, diflPerent streets have different purposes to serve. Some should be thoroughfares, some should be the natural arteries for electric car lines, some are important pleasure drives, some are bordered by large and handsome estates, and some by relatively modest homes. A moment's reflec- tion will convince one that these varying purposes require varying treatment. Most of the streets of Glen Ridge have been located by the owners of abutting real estate, mainly, if not entirely, vdth regard to local or neighborhood interests. The result, while often agreeable so far as the neigh- borhood is concerned, is not always so satisfactory when the need of thoroughfares and other general pub- hc interests are considered. It is not necessary in resi- dence towns, or even in residence sections of large cities, to have every street continue indefinitely; in- deed, I should go further and say that it is not desir- able. Yet the lack of continuity in many of the streets of Glen Ridge will become more and more annoying as the population increases. A number of street ex- Pool in Glen Park Christ Chdbch GLEN RIDGE gl tensions are indicated by dotted lines on the general map at the end of this report. Street junctions and street intersections should also he planned with more regard to continuity. In some places in Glen Ridge awkward and ugly, almost dan- gerous arrangements of streets have been made. An example of this is the junction of Park Way with Highland Avenue at Bloomfield Avenue, which should be corrected at once. The expense involved should not be great, since the land needed is small in amount and is obstructed by no valuable buildings. Mistakes in street junctions appear in some cases to ibe the result of mere carelessness; in others they are the result of some poor shift of economy which has little or no justification. A skilful and common-sense arrangement of street junctions and street intersec- tions is a point of more than ordinary importance, and ■everything possible should be done to correct the more objectionable existing ones and to exercise greater care lo prevent mistakes in the future. The improvement of Bloomfield Avenue and its Tegulation for the future is highly important because Glen Ridge's main school, playground and park are located on Bloomfield Avenue. Happily, of the sixty- ^six hundred feet of frontage on Bloomfield Avenue in Glen Ridge, including both sides of the street, the Borough now owns nearly one-half, so that it is not only to its interest but in its power to fix and hold the Avenue to a high and consistent character of street •development. ^ 46' --- - — =• Subdivision of a Nabkow Street 1»S> lO' *■ 30' -- **r lo' mis'* 60' A Good Standard. Notz the Wide Planting Strips. Roadway PSved Fttll Width •^ 6wAl.KiCtllASa, • 1 , WATK. , I •■6'-** a -•,*■ 2.4' - - ->fr 8 -»*■- -! ! t ! !_ DTOVE So' no' A Suggestion fob North Ridqewood Avenite GLEN RIDGE 23 There are no electric cars in Glen Ridge except on Bloomfield Avenue, and perhaps no need of them at present. It is practically certain, however, that with increased settlement some car Une will be needed run- ning in general north and south, the long three-mile axis of the Borough. I have studied the street system carefully and examined several routes which suggested themselves, weighing their relative advantages. As a result of this survey I recommend for consideration the following route : From Hawthorne Avenue to Washington Street ; east on Washington Street to Hillside Avenue; north on Hillside Avenue to Bloomfield Avenue; Bloomfield Avenue to Herman Street; north on Herman Street to Belleville Avenue; west on Belleville to Sherman Avenue; north on Sherman Avenue to Bay Street. The general width of fifty feet of street in Glen Ridge is reasonable as an average, especially when the houses are well set back, as they usually are. But some streets should be wider, others narrower. Almost invariably the space given to roadway is too wide and that to the planting strip for trees too narrow. The roadway in Glen Ridge will average, I think, about thirty-six feet and the planting strip less than three feet. Given forty-two feet exclusive of sidewalks, the roadway of streets for local use only need not be more than twenty-four feet (the space required for three vehicles), leaving eight or nine feet on each side for trees and a liberal lawn strip. All of this twenty-four foot roadway, however, should be paved from curb to Street Shade Tbees Needed PiiANTiNG Space Inadequate. Sidewalk Forced Oxjt of Alignment and Gutter Invaded GLEN RIDGE 25 curb and not be merely a narrow sixteen foot strip in the centre, as at present. Of course, thoroughfares should have wider paved roadways. More important than the right proportional sub- division of the street into sidewalk, planting strip and drive, is the method of its location. Most streets are part of a general town plan and should be so located as to contribute to the convenience and beauty of the general plan. Then the different functions that each has to fulfil should be taken into account as far as possible. The street trees in Glen Ridge are usually of good species (Sugar Maples and American Elms), but as a rule they are poorly planted and even more poorly maintained. For Glen Ridge to longer neglect its street trees is to lose the value of one of its chief assets. A proper street tree ordinance should be adopted, like that of East Orange or Newark, for example; the street trees promptly placed under the care of a Shade Tree Commission, and given that careful and artistic attention which they need and deserve. Attention also might be turned with advantage to street names, revising existing designations where necessary so as to avoid confusion. These names should be selected, moreover, with some regard to Bloomfield and Montclair, for in this respect, especially for streets running east and west, these places are as one. The names of streets in Glen Ridge, such, for -example, as Ridgewood, Hillside and Highland, are South Ridgewood Avenue Glen Ridge Congregational Chtjrch GLEN RIDGE 2T significant and attractive. This interest may be in- creased by a method which prevails in Europe, and,, to some extent, in this country, of adding distinctive- ness by using appropriately a greater variety of terms for streets. In Germany we have Strasse, Platz, Markt, Ring, Anlagen, etc.; in England, Road, Hill, Square, Crescent, Place, Circus, Row, Drive, Ter- race, etc. THE CIRCUIT DRIVE RiDGEwooD Avenue is perhaps Glen Ridge's best single claim to distinction and its beauty should be preserved inviolate; not only preserved, but enhanced. Reahzing the future of this Avenue and the demands that will unquestionably be made upon it, may it not be well to widen it, where possible, from eighty to one hundred feet (certainly north of Bay Street), continu- ing it appropriately at both ends of the Town, as indi- cated on the map herewith, and so make it a part of the proposed Montclair-Glen Ridge Circuit Drive? The main part of this drive exists already. On the west in Montclair there is Upper Mountain Avenue, which can be connected at Van Vleck. Street with South Mountain Avenue, and on the east Ridgewood Avenue in Glen Ridge. By making connections at the north and south ends, as suggested, a continuous parkway or drive twelve miles in length would be established, accessible from every section of both Glen Ridge and Montclair. The existing parts of this proposed Circuit Drive are of unusual beauty, seldom equalled, indeed, Nine Yeabs Ago this Spot was Treeless and Shrtjbless .k ■Bit'*^ ^^M^^^ ^SMI ^ 41 Hk*" 1 ^ ^ ./f . >^| 0' n r_- j^ggH 1^^ ^ ^ Glen Ridge Golf Club Links GLEN RIDGE 20 in American suburban towns. The new parts should even surpass those already existing; they might with propriety be conceived as parkways rather than streets. This Circuit Drive, as a whole, should be perfected in paving, planting and distinctive street fixtures, and should have a bridle path as well as a drive and a foot- walk. It is also very desirable that agreeable and con- venient connections be made between Eagle Rock Reservation and the Watsessing, Bloomfield and Branch Brook Parks. The reports of the Essex County Park Commission endorse in an unmistakable and whole-hearted way the complete and serviceable system of Parkways and connections recommended by its expert advisers. " To unify the various features (Neighborhood Parks, Branch Brook Park, and out- lying Reservations) above described," said the Essex County Park Commission in their Second Annual Re- port, " a system of Parkways has been determined upon which forms the final feature of park development." This Commission has done some notable park making since its organization fifteen years ago, and the system now includes more than thirty-five hundred acres of exceeding variety of landscape types, and is destined to become one of the finest park systems in the world. But for some reason unknown to me, the Commission appears to have made no headway whatever with the scheme of Parkways, — an absolutely indispensable feature of the system outlined. This is a grave mis- take from every point of view, and particularly unfor- / J; ===vSf ^S. i ---- — Suggested Park Connections GLEN RIDGE 31 tunate and unfair to the smaller communities like Montclair, Glen Ridge, and Bloomfield, whose share of the County Park System was to be in the form of Parkways and not parks. This injustice is pecuharly apparent in the case of the communities just men- tioned, whose local parks have been supplied largely at local expense. Moreover, to the people in the more densely settled sections of the County, no contribution could be made more quickly nor more economically than to open up by means of Parkways the beautiful sub- urban and rural districts which are naturally so park- like in character. I trust, therefore, that the local com- mittees of Glen Ridge Montclair, Caldwell, Bloom- field, Belleville, and others affected, will unite in an earnest appeal to the Essex County Park Commission to carry out with fidelity the original plan of Park- ways, herein reproduced, modifying it only in such ways as subsequent study and experience may prove to be advisable. One practicable scheme, founded in the Commission's second Report, is shown in the sketch opposite. The Newark Avenue portion, 100 feet wide, is already provided, and the land needed in the Glen Ridge extension is not yet built up. SCHOOL GROUNDS, PLAYGROUNDS AND PARKS Glen Ridge has shown unusual foresight in the acquisition of land for parks, although none of it so far has been properly developed, nor have a sufficient number of small areas been secured for playgrounds "1 The School Playfield GLEN RIDGE 33 and playfields. Notwithstanding the open character of the Borough and the fact that practically all buildings are detached, ample reservations should be made in time for parks and playgrounds. The very character of Glen Ridge's upbuilding becomes a danger if depend- ence for public recreation is placed upon private yards. These will prove inadequate and unsuitable. It is often true that villages and country towns offer less public opportunity for outdoor games and sports requiring big fields than the residence sections of large cities. The relation of outdoor recreation and play to happiness, to health, to all-round development, to character, need not here be dwelt upon. The people of Glen Ridge accept all this, have acted upon it, and intend to follow it to its logical conclusion. The children are a main concern of the Borough, perhaps ihe main concern. It is the intention to provide every child not only with the best possible school- ing in the conventional sense, but also with ample opportunity to enjoy health-giving and pleasure-giving exercise in the open air amid appropriately beautiful surroundings. Glen Park with its thirteen or fourteen acres, and the public school playground with more than two acres, furnish a good nucleus for a system of pleasure grounds. These need to be developed and utilized to the full, both during the school term and in the long summer vacation. They should be planned, improved, equipped where necessary, and supervised; they need to be developed for all the year round use, winter as well as summer. It will be a very simple Boat Sailing in Glen Park Pool Zaeriskie Play Ground, Jersey City. Suggestions for Glen Park, Oppo- site THE School Play Field GLEN RIDGE ' 35 matter by building a dam in the brook that runs through The Glen to provide a large and conveniently located skating rink. In this connection I suggest that the equipment and method of maintenance of the Cambridge (Mass.) Skating Club be investigated. But even when thus fully utilized the areas mentioned will not be adequate, I believe, even for the present: certainly not for the future, the demands of which it is desirable to anticipate. Therefore, I recommend that a committee with proper authority be empowered to survey the population of the Borough, estimate its increase and its needs for the next decade or two, and then make an equally careful examination of available sites. With this as a rehable basis for action, a well- balanced and adequate system of parks and play- grounds, including perhaps a small forest, should be selected, acquired, and, when necessary, improved. Such a committee, I beheve, would certainly discover the advantages and necessity of utihzing as play- grounds some of the property already owned by the community, of acquiring in advance large grounds for future schools, and of securing tracts of ten or more acres at the outlying ends of the Borough, north and south, for use and development as country playfields, — as complete models in their way as the Chicago play- grounds (the best in the world) are for a large city. RECOMMENDATIONS For the improvement of Glen Ridge I therefore submit the following recommendations: 4 SoDTH Orange Town Hall Massive Stone Foundations, Glen Pabk GLEN RIDGE 37 (1) That the plan for the contemplated improve- ment of the station and surroundings of the Lacka- wanna Railroad include, (a) the widening of Ridge- wood Avenue at the bridge, (&) adequate space south of the station for carriages and other vehicles, with a. new approach from Woodland Avenue, (c) the abolish- ing of the grade crossing at Hillside Avenue, and (d) the widening of Clark Street where it passes; under the railroad. (2) That efforts be made to obtain from the Erie Railroad the removal of the grade crossing at Wild- wood Terrace and the construction of the Sherman Avenue bridge. (3) That the Glen Ridge Centre, at the intersection of Ridgewood and Bloorafield Avenues, be improved and perfected by the acquisition of the property at the northwest corner and its use for some public or semi- public purpose. (4) That the advantages of building a Borough Hall, a few stores, and perhaps a small hotel or inn near the Borough Centre be seriously considered with a view to action. (5) That consideration be given in advance of actual need to a convenient trolley route to provide serv- ice when necessary north and south through the Borough. (6) That Ridgewood Avenue and its proposed extension be improved as an integral part of the pro- posed twelve-mile Circuit Drive in Montclair and Glen Ridge. Glen Ridge Fire House. Pbivatelt Owned Stores in Biutmore GLEN RIDGE 39 (7) That the Essex County Park Commission be petitioned to locate at once, and execute as soon as possible, a parkway that will connect the main drives of Glen Ridge with the County Park System. (8) That the whole method of locating pubhc streets and roads be investigated for the purpose of protecting the interests of all the people of Glen Ridge and the further improvement of the Borough as a place of residence. (9) That building ordinances be considered, with the intention of promoting health, preserving the homogeneity of neighborhoods and protecting the stability of real estate values; also that property owners be asked to cooperate in this provision by writing suitable restrictions in their deeds of sale. (10) That attention be invited by the proper au- thorities to the names of the streets: first, to a revision of those that are confusing or conflicting and, secondly, to the adoption of a method for the future that will encourage the selection of distinctive and appropriate names. (11) That the Shade Tree Commission (the forma- tion of which is advocated) be requested to take up in a broad and efficient way, much after the manner of East Orange, for example, the whole question of planting and maintaining street trees. (12) That the land already purchased by the Borough for parks and playgrounds be developed and utihzed as rapidly as possible under carefully A Two-Family House Development Six-Family Houses in Letohworth, England GLEN RIDGE 41 prepared plans, including a wading pool, skating pond, and outdoor gymnastic apparatus. (13) That some public authority be empowered to study and survey the Borough with a view to estab- lishing an adequate system of school yards, school gardens, playgrounds and parks for the present popu- lation and to reasonably anticipate the needs of the immediate future. IN CONCLUSION In conclusion it should be stated frankly that it is not expected that all of these recommendations will be carried out at once. It is true that some are urgent and delay, with many of them, expensive; but then others can wait without serious disadvantage. Taken together they form a general coherent plan of action — one that if consistently followed will reduce unneces- sary waste and dissatisfaction to a minimum. Some of these recommendations may be carried into effect at once through the formation of a Tree Commission, the passage of building and revised street regulations, and the establishment of a voluntary organization to look after matters that do not properly fall under pubhc control. The cost of the proposed improvements need not be excessive; in the main it will be in the nature of investment rather than expense. Much of it should, therefore, be provided by bond issues, supplemented, however, by private gifts and by a share in the un- earned increment from land, in case New Jersey passes a law corresponding to that common in Europe, and FtiNDS Tartly Raised to Convert this Space to Pakk Use . i** A Good, Inexpensive House GLEN RIDGE 43; which has already been adopted by a number of States in this country. In order to actually raise the standard of the common Ufe of Glen Ridge above that of other places, it may also be necessary for a time to increase slightly the tax rate. I believe that this will be found to be justified by both direct and indirect results and that no other expenditure will be so profitable. Glen Ridge has a population of over three thousand — a three-fold increase in fifteen years. While the size of the Borough protects it from a large population,, it may reasonably expect to double its present num- ber. Action now, therefore, will prevent many of the mistakes, both of omission and commission, that other larger residence towns, have made, and the purpose of this Report is to advocate a more skilful method of town making, a more confident belief in the future,, a larger early public investment in land, and even' greater regard for beauty and recreation, and in par- ticular, a wider application of sound business principles to public affairs. The expenditure of money, time and effort involved in this program will be justified in a better Borough to live in, the avoidance of waste, and the legitimate and unfailing, returns of enterprise, wis- dom and pubhc spirit. Glen Ridge is' already unlike any other town; it has its own character, its own claims to distinction. Wisely has it reflected its topography in its streets and other public places, and developed' its public ideals with a rare regard to essential public needs. Consistently following what is best in the past, the present plan is intended to promote an even clearer ':■; ■■ '^'^ i:,4 .fey 4 ■ ^'. ■"'■' i-^^HB BP? ■ ■- ..j^i'Sa J ^^^^^s^ P'^:-. .j;. V 1 i i .. 'm^m^'%^^^- ^^! -^- -s:^- ~;,^s.-^-- '•.•f?a Hf% I mE>- :- jiatPiii^"" '•■»' ■pg^ l^r 1 IT iiffrr'] Jx^..1 !:.> BBRt^ , ^ I " .. * . » ^ / '-^m ^^^^j||bH«| nu^ K A RiDGEwooD Avenue Landmark On HiLLCKEST Road GLEN RIDGE 45 consciousness on the part of the citizens generally of what the Borough life should be, to avoid the over- sights and mistakes of merely drifting, and secure the well-defined results of a carefully considered program for the future. John Nolen, Landscape Architects Cambbidge, Mass., November 15, 1909. Mill Dam and Wheel, Glen Park. A Loss that Could be Restored and A Skating Pond Formed. Few of these Overshot Water Wheels ARE Left in this Country. EAGLE ^CK RESERVATION RESERVATION PLAN FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF MONTCLAIR AND GLEN RIDGL ScaU 400F\-nn- JOHN NOLEN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT CAMBRIDGE MASS. i9oa NOTE. — On this map green ink indicates existing parks and unimproved property now owned by Montclair or Glen Ridge to be developed as parks or playgrounds; the proposed Town Common on Orange Road; the proposed Plaza at the intersection of Bloomfield and FuUerton Avenues; the proposed Circuit Drives; and Blpomfield Avenue, the main artery of travel. The broken lines indicate proposed street extensions.