Planning a Communications System in a New Town: the Case of Columbia, Maryland

New theories which describe the city in terms of comrrrunications patterns, accompanied by the advent of new communications technology, especially that of cable communications, have posed new problems for planners; there is a need for their intervention into the planning process for communications systems to define communications goalsf m~asure impacts of the technology on urban life, and use the technology in the public interest. Although few experiments in communications planning exist, new towns, such as Columbia, Maryland, the subject of this case study, have promised to be good vehicles for experiments in that the new town setting presumably eliminates many of the barriers to planning for communications systems which exist in other cities. In Columbia, planning for a cable system was part of a larger communications planning framework, including institutional and design conmrunications-related goals as well as the cable system. Although the cable system planning in Columbia failed, the consideration of the implementation of the other goals sheds light on the policy behind the CATV situation and helps the planner to better understand the role of the cable system within a broader communications planning background. Thus, the thesis first describes the goals developed in the communications planning in Columbia, then the implementation of the goals, first, the indirect, institutional and design related goals: new citizen orientation, developer/ citizen relations, village center communications, neighborhood face-to-face contact, telephones, ·newspapers, and printing facilities. While these goals were attained to a large extent, the intended social benefits with respect to communications I l itself were not in all cases realized. Then, the analysis proceeds to describe the CATV situation in Columbia. Here the planning process can be termed a failure due to developer mistakes: lack of coordinated plans, failure to install cable equipment during initial development, failure to negotiate with Howard County, and failure to include the citizens in the planning process. Thus, the paper concludes that the comnru.nications planning process as a whole was insui'ficient to influence communications system development in Columbia from its beginnings to the present or to guide its development in the future, because, in essence 1 the barriers to effective planning were not overcome. Goals were vague and implementation not coordinated. New town authority was preempted by county regulation, resulting in an economically motivated county decision. Communications structures have developed incrementally, independent of centralized planning, and conmrunications planning has been performed only in response to expressed dissatisfaction and problem areas. The analysis concludes with recommendations to improve Columbia's communi~ations planning process in particular, and to guide comnru.nications planners in this field in general.

Thus, the thesis first describes the goals developed in the communications planning in Columbia, then the implementation of the goals, first, the indirect, institutional and design related goals: new citizen orientation, developer/ citizen relations, village center communications, neighborhood face-to-face contact, telephones, ·newspapers, and printing facilities. While these goals were attained to a large extent, the intended social benefits with respect to communications I l itself were not in all cases realized.
Then, the analysis proceeds to describe the CATV situation in Columbia. Here the planning process can be termed a failure due to developer mistakes: lack of coordinated plans, failure to install cable equipment during initial development, failure to negotiate with Howard County, and failure to include the citizens in the planning process.
Thus, the paper concludes that the comnru.nications planning process as a whole was insui'ficient to influence communications system development in Columbia from its beginnings to the present or to guide its development in the future, because, in essence 1 the barriers to effective planning were not overcome. Goals were vague and implementation not coordinated.
New town authority was preempted by county regulation, resulting in an economically motivated county decision. Communications structures have developed incrementally, independent of centralized planning, and conmrunications planning has been performed only in response to expressed dissatisfaction and problem areas.
The analysis concludes with recommendations to improve Columbia's communi~ations planning process in particular, and to guide comnru.nications planners in this field in general. I.
3 It is supported by Wilfred OWen: " Originally .{C i ties7 made it possible to communicate by enabling people to live close together in a relatively small place ••• " ("Notes on Networks, 11 Ekistics,Vol. 70,No. 179,p. 293), by Goldstein: "Comnrunications of all types have come to dominate the urban scene; have, in .fact, become the very basis of urban living and, as such, guide the shape o.f urban development, 11 ("The Development o.f an Urban Communication Density Model, " unpublished PhD thesis proposal, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, undated, p. 4), and by Melvin Webber: Trr have been suggesting that the quintessence o.f urbanization is not population density or agglomeration, but specialization, the concomitant interdependence, and the human interactions by which interdependencies are satis-fied~ Viewed from this orientation, the urban settlement is the spatial adaptation to demands of dependent activities and specialists .for low conmrunication costs. It is help.ful, therefore, to view the spatial city as a connnunications system, as a vastly complex switchboard through which messages and goods of various sorts are routed," (''Order in Diversity: Connnuni ty Without Prophinqui ty," in Harold M. Proshansky Congestion on the highways is not ve-rry different from the high volumes of electric usage that caused the massive power failure in the northeast a few years ago; from the amounts of mail that are troubling our post offices and are causing the price of a letter to rise sharply; from the 1 written diarrhea' that has resulted in a fantastic proliferation of magazines, journals, and books; and so on. And just as our man-made channels have clear capacities, so do our own individual channels. The high levels of interaction that characterize urban life often approach these capacities; thus the social pathologies associated with urban living.6 ~eier, ~· cit., p. 2. 5webber discusses these relationships, particularly the influence of conmnmications technology on location decisions of businesses and homes in metropolitan areas; "But as the transportation-conmnmication technologies change to permit interaction over greater distances at constant or even at falling costs more and more outlying space is thereby brought into the market and the relative value of space adjacent to large settlements falls, 11 (££_. cit., p. 543) (see note 3). 6 Goldstein, op. cit., p. 4.
Thus, not only must the city increase communications, but that communications must also be organized within the proper channels to facilitate urban living.
Parallel to the increasing awareness of the importance of communications to urban life and physical form has been a growing sophistication in communic.ations technology, and a growing impact of this technology on the country as a whole.  (1948). Cable television was originally developed as a method for bringing improved television signals into areas which were prohibit~.d by distance or other I physical obstacles from clearly receiving over the air broadcast signals. As described by some students: "Early CATV system operators by building a high tower on a hill and using directional antennas with amplifiers and then running cable with additional amplifiers from the tower to the community, distributes the television signal from the tower to the community, in much the same: manner that telephone service is distributed to the home. 10 The availability of the increased number of channels and the possibility of producing low cost programming has opened up many new uses for CATV services, which go far beyond the traditional news and entertainment functions of broadcast TV: In addition to movies, sports events and local news programs, •••• consumer-specific or narrowcast programs including health, education, cultural and entertainment, legal and safety topics could be broadcast. Health-related uses might include first-aid instruction, health insurance counseling and continuing medical education instruction for physicians. Instruction for credit to homebound students can be provided. Cultural or entertainment programs could be broadcast to specific segments of the community, black history being the most frequently cited example, but perhaps also including community theater. Consumer counseling could be provided over the legal channel while safety channels could operate . as home fire and burglar alarms and emergency warning systems. In addition, channels can be established for use by citizens and community or nei~hborhood groups, providing a community voice. 1 Besides thi s original function ,of providing improved I over-the-air signals, cable television provides the advantage or opening additional channels --20-40 --independent of the limited number available on the electromagnetic spectrum, thus greatly lowering the costs of progrannning. Cable can further provide certain two-way features, including restricted, special purpose channels, viewer polling, utility readings, and fire and burglary warning devices, among others~2 A more comprehensive list is included in Appendix I.
With these possibilities, cable television has recently become the focus of much concern from many quarters, as the harbinger of a "communications revolution 11 • 1 3 Since cable television is at a stage "where the general exercise of choice is still possible, 111 4 in terms of ownership, regulation, 11 National Academy of Engineering, Communications Technology for Urban Improvement, (Washington, D.C., June, structure and program content, it has been made the system 6 object of numerous studies by scientists (Rand Corporation), humanists (United Church of Christ), journalists (Chicago Journalism Review), politic al study groups (the Urban Institute), minority groups (Black Efforts for Soul in Television), video producers (Raindance Corporation), and radical media Ramparts magazine).
Last to jump on the conmrunicati,ons technology nband-1 wagon" have been city planners. As the implications of cable television for changing travel patterns in cities, alleviating social tensions, and fostering citizen participation in government are being explored and as more cities become involved in the process of granting franchises to cable operators, city planners have begun to realize the need for their intervention into the planning process for conmrunications systems, so as "not to miss theiti chance to shape the new urban infrastructure • "15 The questions then arise of why and how the city planner should exert this type of influence on the structure or the emerging conmrunications technology. While the role of the planner in general is defined in many ways, students have agreed in noting the additive nature of urban planning functions in the U.S. from the beginnings of the field. As Perloff notes: p 15 Ralph B. Hirsch, " Cable Coil'IIl'lUilications and the Urban lanner: Will We Shape the New Infrastructure ?" submitted for p (resentation at Confer-in, 1972, American Institute of Planners, Boston: October, 1972), p. 2.
State, !95'7), From (1) an early stress on planntng as concerned chiefly with aesthetics, planning came to be conceived also in terms of (2) the efficient functioning of the city --in both the engineering and the economic sense; then (3) as a means of controlling the uses of land as a technique for developing a sound land-use pattern; then (4) as a key element in efficient governmental procedures; later (5) as involving welfare consider~tions and stressing the human element; and, more recently, (6) planning has come to be viewed as encompassing many socio-economic and political, as well as physical elements that help to guide the functioning and deve~opment of the urban conn:nu.ni ty .16 Expanding this notion, Perloff goes on to note that: Looking back over the history of city planning, it becomes clear that both the term 1 planning 1 and city planning activities have served extremely useful social ends. Planning --as an approach, a symbol, and an activity --has helped to bring ••• into the consciousness of governments and of the general public, the importance and desirability of being concerned (operationally) with relationships among people, physical objects, and ecological forces; of trying to see things whole; of setting goals and of trying to figure out the best ways of achieving them; of trying to coordinate and integrate the different kinds of physical improvement and development activities carried out by the government; of aiming at and working toward a better future. Thus, at least in the United States, a dynamic relationship has developed between city planning as an idea and an activity, on the one side, and, on the other, the broadening popular view of municipal government responsibility and the more widespread acceptance of the need for consciously working toward an improved urban environment.17 16 Harvey s. Perloff The public interest in cable is based on a general pattern of plenitude and flexibility, not merely on the specialized demand for a few 'open access' channels. It is true that cable's future cannot be predicted and extrapolated from broadcast and telephone concepts; but our collective experience with the effects of short range and unimaginative planning with new communications and transportation technologies should serve as a warning to take the complexities of cable seriously. It is too early now to say whether cable will tend to be a monster or a miracle. But in five years or so the pattern will be established and tendencies for good and bad will have begun to solidify. The pattern will be developed and shaped with each decision to grant a franchise and with each system constructed.
While to some extent the general pattern will be influenced by nationally oriented policies, the most fundamental and rudimentary decisions still lie with local ·nrunicipalities. Decisions made one-by-one on the local level will create the aggregate pattern composed of many gable systems, our conmrunications future.l 9 (Rather than engage in elaborate a priori discussions of 11 public 1nterest 11 , the case study will be recounted and the dilemmas concerning public interest will be explored in the light of this case study.) However, even given this mandate for plannEr involvement, barriers to the participation of the planner in the process of communications system planning to date have been several: First, unlike land use or housing codes, major communications systems in our society rarely fall under the purview of urban planners. Communications regulatory agencies exist at the state or national levels. At the same time, the broad urban consequences of comnrunications innovations (e.g., on location or family structure) are hard to measure and predict. What is usually more obvious are the immediate economic effects of a new technology or information service. And third, changes in the communications structure of a city or region are likely to occur in a very fragmented and incremental manner, New Town is an independent relatively self-contained, planned community of a size large enough to support a range of housing types and to provide economic opportunity within its borders for the employment of its residents. It is large enough to support a balanced range of public facilities and social and cultural opportunities. It is surrounded by a green belt of open space which serves to relate it directly to the surrounding countryside and to limit its size within a predetermined range regarding both population and area. Within reasonable limits the Proportions of the total area to be used for industrial, commercial, residential, public facilities, and open space are specified during the planning process. The desired density of population overall and its relationship to open space are also lrovided for. New Towns are started on previously undeveloped and and are built by staged development over a period of time. " provides an opportunity to overcome some of the barriers to planning discussed above. ·derations, institutional structures, and other media cons were all included in the planning process. Columbia's "work 26 group" process was one of the first attempts to integrate social planning considerations, includi~g communications, into a "systems concept," with the overall purpose of deciding which facilities and structures would be implemented in the new town. Models of such efforts are of' vital importance tor future connnunications planning, wh~ch heretofore has not I been conducted in such a framework. Thus, the failure to 26Hoppenfeld, one of the first professionals connected with Columbia's planning, describes the work group process as follows: "The idea emerged of creating a grouI from a cluster of individuals each with 'expertise' in genera ly defined areas such as education, health, recreation, and so forth •••• Typically this 1 work group' met for two days and one night (important to sustain a thought pattern in depth). The meetings took place twice monthly and lasted in disciplined form tor about six months through the evaluation of sketch plan alternatives and analysis of these by the group. Critical to the success.f'ul functioning of the group was the f'ull time involvement of the psychologist, Donald Michael, to lead the sessions. In addition to this leadership skill, he represented the one 'field of interest' which is the least of the mix that is, the systems concept and the need for interrelatedness. It was his task not only to identify and articulate the conflicts among competing interests as they were revealed in these meetings, but more importantly to clarify the benefits and enrichment to community interests which were possible •••• This process of interdisciplinary confrontation, of personal involvement and commitment to the process by planners and developer, and the continued search for social validity is at the crux or Columbia's effort. Design decisions based on sensual, engineering, or economic considerations must vie with the test ot social purpose." "A Sketch of' the Planning-Building Process tor Columbia, Maryland, 11 Journal of' the American Institute of Planners, (November, 1967), pp. 4b2-4b4. implement cable television in Columbia represents only one segment of the total communications planning process.
Thus, this case study of Columbia will focus on the entire communications planning process in Columbia, with the purpose of examining the broad planning framework into which a cable television system plan must fit, identifying the obstacles encountered by the planners of Columbia, especially with regard to implementing the cable ~elevision system, and t deriving reconnnendations for the involvement of other planners in this new field.
The results of the planning process will be assessed in terms of the outcome of the process itself --the policy of the new town developer, as set forth in his goals, actions with respect to implementation, and statements reflecting his attitudes with respect to the communications system. The analysis will assume the following structure.
First, the comnrunications planning goals for Columbia will be identified, as they are set forth in four major planning documents. 2 7 These goals will then be synthesized into categories for analysis, according to the policies and objec- 28 Here the author's analysis will be combined with Force.
the evaluation of problem areas delineated by the Task Force as part of the on-going planning effort in Columbia.
communications planning is woven into the general social and institutional planning in Columbia; it has also been considered specifically in terms of actual conmrunications media themselves. Thus, the categories for analysis will be divided into two groups: institutiona~, indirect co:mmunica- Finally, recommendations specific to Columbia with respect to improvement of their comnru.nications planning process will be made, followed by generalized recommendations tor planners in this field. A more detailed discussion of the methodology is contained in Appendix III.
It is hoped that this case study will be useful in defining a role for the · planner in this new area of concern, and in providing more concrete guidelines to assist him in making the decisions which must be made to positively shape Communication was one of the original considerations ot Columbia's planners, presumably falling into the category ot "Create a conmnmi ty that would foster human growth, '' one or the five original planning goals set forth by the developer for the new town. The "work group" planners, in the process described above, did consider the problem of conmrunications in the new town. While these considerations are woven into the substance of all the early papers, as were all the subject areas considered, two of the early planners considered communications goals more explicitly.
The most important early contribution was made by Dr. Stephen Withey, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan. His task in the work group was defined as follows: His role will be to describe the various kinds of formal and informal institutions and programs that affect interpersonal and mass conmru.nication as they relate to culture ••• He will identify the problems and opportunities of conmrunication, culture, and connnunity as they seem to be evolving. He will analyze the role of various media such as radio, TV, newspaper, the theater, schools, etc., and their P8fticular place in a community the size of ours.

19
Withey•s contribution was a work paper, 11 Conmru.nications and sense of Conmru.ni ty, 11 2 which focused, for the most part, on the communications needs of the co~i~Y as it developed.
Withey made two sets of specific suggestions long and short term. The first set treated " the needs of the growth period" attracting residents and businesses, informing residents of development, conmrunity activities, governmental structures, and new town goals. The second set concerned development of comDIWlications structures --newspapers, conmrunity centers, local television.
The major concern of this paper is best expressed by Withey 1 s exhortation to "consider the connnunication potential in any aspect of development. 11  I t m structure was never really treated as an isolated consys e sideration in the early work group plans.
The ideas of W ithey and Gans were later woven into aDOther major planning document, the " Report on the Planning aDd programming of Physical Facilities and Social Processes, n of Donald Michael,5 which was meant to be a summary of the work group process and papers. Michael envisioned three ways of carrying out the overall g oal of 11 ma.}dng provision for the I greatest possible interchange of information and ideas within the community and easy access to information from· the state, region, nation, and world, ;, 6 promoting connnunica.tion through institutional structures on the town, village, and neighborhood levels; promoting face-to-face contact through design and through public transportation, and establishing formal communications structures through established forms of media and new technology. Only the latter category can really be considered as a totally independent communications goal, related solely to the actual means for achieving communications through a physical system. Thus, summarized, the aim of W ithey, Gans, and Micha.el was to establish the substantive content and overall purposes ot a communications system, rather than to set forth specific Plans for the actual communications media and institutional structures themselves.
While their specific cormnents are listed in Appendix under "General Goals, 11 an overview of these considera-IV, tions is useful at this point. The primary concern was the creation of "a sense of conmrunity" within the new town.
Withey's emphasis was on "(a) interaction that creates some While the idea of a conmrunications system was alluded to in this general fashion by Withey, Gans, and Michael Stone's report made operational some of the goals expressed by Michael and Withey; he advocated co~~dination of these I various uses into a "total systems concept" for connnunications technology, rather than a " series of uncoordinated facilities, " stating that "a comprehensive plan should be drafted now, regardless of when it is planned to achieve implementation.nlO Bis report set forth a series of possible components of such a system, while leaving its exact structure to the developer: "The scope of plans for providing services to Columbia may be as inclusive or specialized as is deemed desirable by the developers and others who will be involved in making decisions. 1111 He made several practical recommendations, including a feasibility study for the installation of whatever comnru.nication system was desired to be undertaken immediately, a Columbia 9 According to Marvin Thomas, Director of the Howard County Library, this study was originally intended to be a broader feasibility study for the improvement of library services in the county; however, the committee, after being Warmly welcomed by Conmrunity Research and Development, turned ~eir attention to an idealistic picture of the possibilities 0 new communications technology. According to Thomas, the 00 mmittee did not even meet with local school, library, or c~ty government personnel in drafting their plans, to cons er such vital factors as local budgets; it was a "no ;:;1hity situation. 11 Personal interview, Columbia, Maryland, c 12, 1973. 10 Stone, .2£.• ~., p. 6. 11 :tbid.
-coDJDlUllications Service Agency to administer the c oordinated 12 communications system, an agreement by Howard County and Boward Research and Development (HRD) ( 11 Permission for a franchise must be granted by Howard County") and immediate installation of the cable equipment: 11 Finally, whatever else may be involved, it is hoped that Conmrunity Research and Development, Incorporated will take the steps needed immediately to insure installation of the necessary CATV antepnas, cable and other I equipment so that in the same way water and sewer service will become available, conmrunications. lines may also be tapped. 1 3 After the work group plans, communications was apparently ignored in Columbia's planning; no communications plans were fornmlated between 1965 and 1972. This gap is confirmed 12"The broad scope of plans for providing comnrunication service to Columbia which have been set for the above •••• indicate that in Columbia a new approach should be devised for administration of public communication and information services. such an approach would be represented in the establishment of a new non-profit corporation (or subdivision of the proposed Columbia Parks and Recreation Service Corporation) to be called the Columbia Communication Service Agency. Policies for the new agency would be set forth by a Board of Directors, each of whom should represent a specific segment of the educational, cultural, or econ.omic community. In actual operation, it is expected that the CCSA Board would conduct its business in a manner common to similar groups associated with educational television, museums, and public service organizations •••• Physical facilities to be occupied and/or managed by the CCSA Would include a Town Center library and CCSA headquarters, ••• the several village libraries, and a warehouse facility located inh that area of the city planned to accommodate such buildings w ere much needed space for storage of materials, equipment, and processing work could be obtained at low cost." Stone,p. 20. This administrative structure threatened the status and incurred the wrath of the Library Board, according to ~.oma 1 s, and was a major factor in hindering the chances of .u11p ementation.
13 Stone,p. 23. bY Hoppenfeld,who, in discussing the work group plans, uses communications as an example of one of the "potentials which 2) Establish a continuing means for conmru.nication between the new town developer and the citizens.
3) Make the village centers serve as comnunications centers.
4> Encourage face-to-face contact through the neighborhood concept, the pathway system, and efficient mass transit on the town level.
Technological/Direct Goals: 5 ) Provide adequate telephone service to all homes and businesses.
6 ) Encourage independent development of local media -newspapers, radio, etc. 7 ) Provide low cost printing facilities for community use.

8)
Establish a town wide cable television system.
As indicated above, this paprr ~ill divide its consideration of goal implementation into the non-cable television related goals (1-7) and the cable television situation in

Columbia.
It is hoped that the more general discussion of the first seven goals will provide insight into some of the factors which influenced the CATV planning and decisionmaking. with these other mechanisms, and the Rouse Company did begin studying the problem soon after his report was issued, but tbe problems and mistakes which characterized the cable venture (discussed in Chapter IV) prohibited this type of 11 systems approach" , and the other goals were implemented independently ot CATV plans. ,. •lllphasized this goal: "How are new residents and businesses attracted? " 2 He suggests a town-wide information center for tbiS purpose, which has been implemented in Columbia.

III. IMPLEMENTATION OF COMMUNICATIONS GOALS
The prospective homebuyer in Columbia is first exposed to the new town concept in a trip to the Exhibit Center, in the town center area. Here he is met first with an outdoor display of colorful posters depicting the " logos" of the yarious villages; then he is treated to a multi-screen slide provision of this type of information is, of course, d eveloper's advantage; the new town idea is an attracto the tive selling point. In addition to this general, public relations information, homebuyers receive a pamphlet from the builders describing in detail the restrictive covenants binding on their property and other legal requirements. All builders are required to provide this information before any contracts are signed; this pamphlet requirement wa~ instituted by HRD atter citizens requested such consume~ p~otection information. 6 As a final approach to homebuyer orientation, it is planned to institute the device of an information trailer at the site of new villages. Although this device was not used elsewhere, it is planned for the Owen Brown site.7 After the new resident has bought his home and moved into the connmlnity, his village board 8 takes over the task of orientation. Since the influx of new residents is great,9 and they all move into an area at the same time, resident information must be handled systematically; there are no well informed 6 rnterview with Mickey Dunham, Columbia, Maryland, March 14, 1973. 7~.

8
As described in the " New Resident 1 s Handbook, ' "Each Village in Columbia has a Village Association ••• the Village Association elects a Board of Directors to be its voice in the community. Village Board members are elected annually and Bo&.l'ds meet regularly to discuss and find solutions to issues :r concern to village residents ••• the Combined Board of Columbia B!~~rised of the members elected to the existing four Village It r;· It is presided over by a chairman and a vice-chairman. 0 ers a forum for issues of city-wide concern. Later, this welcome wagon function crone to be assumed by the . 11 ages 36-45, with incomes of $10,000-$15,ooo. ot CoDDllUDity services, among whose goals was to ' 1 define the •aning of human resources and social services in Howard County." The seminar included a " communications task force, 11 Which studied ways to improve Howard County/Columbia relations, a communications problem totally ignored in the early plans.
Allong the task force recommendations was the inclusion of information about Howard County in the information packet given Howard county; this reconnnendation has not been carried out. 12 On the village level, several perceived difficulties iD the orientation process exist. The Chairman of the Board of one village, in which there is a high concentration of J111lti-family housing (5Q%), noted that the welcome wagon system, based on door-to-door calls, is less effe~tive in the apart- , p. 4, Gans, .2.E.· ill_., p. 12, Michael, _ . , p. n-8. r esidents regarding complaints and problems. During the rrom earlY development of the first villages, this function was informally handled by the Columbia Association staff.
It was only after the first three villages were almost complete, in 1971, that HRD and CA realized that this function was not appropriate for CA to handle; the information of the staff was not current and of ten not complete, and " the bound-! arias between the developer's, the CA 1 s, the county's and the builders' responsibilities were often unclear. 11 17 The decision was then made to institute the "King• s Representative" within the structure of HRD itself. In January, 1971, the job of 11 developer• s representative" was created, and Ms. Mickey Dullham, formerly on the staff of CA, was recruited for the position. Reporting to the general manager of Columbia, the developer• s representative was made responsible 11 for identifying and comnrunicating to the appropriate authority within HRD (or CA) deficiencies in our services to the community. 11 18 Interviews with Ms. Dunham, on the one hand, and with several Village Managers, on the other hand, seem to indicate that the function has proven itself needed and successful.

• I
and library would all be in one place 3 2 --was seen as a d for J. ·nteraction among all the residents of the cOJllll1on groun As Rouse explains: village.
As a result of being in one place, there would again be the kind of natural, unself-conscious meeting of teacher, student, minister, parent, merchant, doctor --in the normal course of life, in a population size in which people were capable of knowing a great many other people and, therefore, feeling comfortable, secure, and willing to communicate with one another, more able to do something about whatever it was that needed to be done. 33i , .
Thus arose the recommendations of the planners that However, the fact tha t the planning has been successful in terms of providing the facilities themselves does not necessarily guarantee that these facilities will serve the desired tunction of bringing people together for face-to-face interaction. While the Task Force reports that "village meeting balls are apparently well used," 35 and this conclusion is corroborated by at least one village association in as much as "there is a crush at night when community organization meet- Face-to-face contact: The idea of promoting communications through face-to-face contact is a natural offshoot of the philosophy which guided Columbia's planning as a whole: "that it is absolutely essential to making a city work that we create physical and institutional circumstances in which there is an opportunity for people to relate to one another and to I' their ins ti tut ions. ,iJB The village center concept has already been discussed as the most important manifestation of this policy; its other elements include the neighborhood concept and the interneighborhood pathway system, and the implementation of townwide mass transit.
Rouse describes the neighborhood concept as follows: The control on the size of the neighborhood became the elementary school, which seemed to us to be the first integrating community force in urban life. We plumped for small schools instead of big schools. We were trying to hold them to 500-600 students. This means about 1,200 families in a place where we would have to put all the other things. With the school we put all the other services for that kind of population a child care center, swimming pool, park, playground, meeting room, and small store -a restoration of the old corner dru.gstoregrocer concept at the heart of the neighborhood. This meant also a path system .to connect the people in the neighborhood to the central place so that a mother with children of baby-carriage age could go ------38M:i. dura, op. cit., p. 180.
someplace with the prospect that other people would be there --in the meeting room, or the child care center, or school, store, or snack bar. Meeting would become a function of the neighborhood, meetings that would not occur if all these things were scattered across the 39 landscape and were reached only by automobile.

46
The design of neighborhoods of 1,200 families and the system has been carried out in Columbia; however, the pathway link between the provision of these institutions and actual face-to-face co:mrrru.nication brought about as a result is as ,. yet unevaluated. While the Task Forbe reports that neighborhood meeting rooms are generally well used, they find that the goal of using the neighborhood store manager as a neighborhood confidant has not succeeded; this was listed as ntailures " in the Task Force report, 40 due to the fact that the franchise type operations in Columbia do not lead to the same type of involvement with the community as inner-city "mom and poif enterprises. Several of the neighborhood convenience stores have recently gone out of business and the Columbia Association is considering rescuing their community function by assuming responsibility for their operations and combining them with the neighborhood meeting centers.4 1 As far as the pathway system is concerned, the Task Poree report suggests that its effectiveness in fostering face-to-face communication has not yet been sufficiently tested. To make this form of communication maximally effective the community should have an efficient, inexpensive, and convenient mass transport system linking all major public areas not within walking distance of each other. A minibus system, operating on a 4-minute headway schedule, in its own road bed, should be the approach used. It should circulate at least among the village centers and the town center and the fare should be no more than five cents.
such a system will encourage people to make fuller use of the resources of the conmru.nity, because it will be easy to get around the community. Also it will ease ec9nomic burdens for some by removing th~ need for a second car. Moreover, the freed-up funds can then be used more creatively. For both reasons, people will be more likely to attend to a wider range of communications regarding the opportunities and events in the community if they have the convenience of the bus.44 48 A mass transit system on a scale which would make faceto-race contact most possible has not been built in Columbia, although this system has been planned for and rights-of-way tor a fixed-route mass transit system reserved. The Columbia Association runs buses which operates on fixed routes, on a hal.1'-hour headway, and a dial-a-ride system, also run by CA is also available. However, the goal of achieving a majority ot one-car families in Columbia has not been achieved. Columbia in 1969 had an average of 1.73 ca.rs per family.45 Major users ot the bus system are those without cars --youth and elderly.
In a survey of bus use, 78% of 202 respondents reported that they never used the bus, even though a stop was within ten !µ+Michael, .£E• cit., p. R-7.  services. Editorial policies differ somewhat, but coverage is repetitive, perhaps because sources of news are essentially limited to press releases and press conferences by HRD, CA and the county government. One limitation of these weekly and sad-weekly publications is the time lag in reporting important ws items or announcements. Mickey Dunham, speaking for HRD, bemoaned the lack of a radio station to serve this purpose, 1a71ng that 11 if something unusual and great were happening right now, we 1 d be hard pressed to get the news out. "54 Although aene or the papers is presently a daily, the "Columbia Times" may 1oon "go daily" in the future. 55 What are the social patterns which housing and design have changed? If anything, one is impressed perhaps less by the changes than by the continuities and the persistence of previous social patterns •••• There is little conclusive evidence of more than ephemeral changes in social patterns through the medium of planned communities •••• Thus, to all intents and purposes, it remains to be established how planning does significantly more than shift or regroup active --not latent -social relations into new settings.57 And Suzanne Keller, in a study of planned neighborhoods, in which planners attempts to encourage interaction through !'educed distance (face-to-face contact), also notes that: Except under very special conditions, ••• the manipulation of physical and functional distance does not have an unequivocal impact on social life. Even where the reduction of physical and functional distances leads to increased visual and personal contacts among residents, this may not be followed by increased sociable contacts among them, and when applied to incompatible groups, it may even increase interpersonal friction.  which HRD agreed to obtain. In the contract, HRD specifically states that: "No other approval or consent is required by any firm, or corporation for the construction and operaperson, tion of the system in the areas covered by this Agreement as contemplated hereby," in spite of the face that Stone and others had warned long before that Coun7y permission was nee-  Ibid.
-"hands off policy, 1112 and the interests of the new assumed a to be represented by the CTVC, headed by Winkler.
town came nie council set out to find an applicant which would work to create a community owned system. 1 3 In this with them arrangement, the citizen group sought to apply for the franchise themselves, then contract with an operator who would install the actual hardware. In such a way, total responsibility for system operation and program 9ontent decisions t would rest with the CTVC and the other community shareholders.
From the time the ordinance was enacted until the lovember 1 deadline for applications, only three formal applications were made to the county: Community CableVision Systems ot Howard County, Inc., Howard Cable Television Associates, and Sammons Communication Corporation of Texas. Negotiations were entered into between RCA and the CTVC, with the purpose of arriving at an agreement for a community-owned system, but these were never consummated. One member of the CTVC attrit.utes this failure to the fact that the RCA negotiations were •leaked" early to the press, leading RCA to leave. 11 The Council acted irresponsibly in this matter, 11  iD the planning is the fact that, as mentioned above, the c()lllDIUllications goals were never interrelated, but rather seated throughout the early planning documents. 2 3 The Stone ter Report itself was never requested by the Rouse Company. And even when it was espoused by HRD, its recorrnnendations for a "comprehensive plan to be drafted now 11 and for a Columbia communications Service Agency to administer the plan in a systematic way were totally ignored. No ~ttempts were made I b1 HRD to draw any of the county institutions whose involveaent was described in the r~port into its planning. Another, most grave, mistake on the 1 part of HRD was ! their irresponsibility with respect to the prospects for county regulation of the system in granting the contr act to Time ·Life directly. While Ditch claims that since ' 1 cable wasn't covered bf anything at that time, we didn't feel it necessary to speak with the county," 28 and the agreement itself states that 11 no other approval or consent is required by any person, firm, or oorporation for the construction and operation of a system in the areas covered by this Agreement, 1129 the Stone Report had specifically stated as early as 1965 that 11 permission for a banchise must be granted by Howard County. 11 It is the opinion member of the CTVC that "the Rouse Company chose to ignore the county in the early stages ••• they could very well negotiated. " 30 2~o use testimony, August 25, 1971 hearings, as above. ------36 Agreement, han hi 3 7Howard County, Maryland, " Cable Television Systems c se Act, 11 October 12, 1971, {mimeo), Sec. J.4.70l(f).
The issue revolves around whether those roads which New Town developer paid for, constructed, and deeded to C ounty still "belong to him as far as cable rights-of-way t)18 are concerned. At the franchise hearings in August, 1971, JJ't Held of HRD stressed the fact that HRD has requested that t)le easements be located behind the homes, and not in the :roads, stating that less than 1% of the cable would be installed eder roads, and only " a tiny fraction 1 o~ that under county roads.3 8 Winkler corroborates this fa~t, that I:IRD has 11 preaerved certain rights for utilities under the streets. 11 39 possible to obtain precise figures, the be that HRD controlled 90-97% of the neceslal'Y rights-of-way for the system. First, the contract is granted "in perpetuity," and ' /JJB.Y not be revoked, canceled, limited, or impaired by HRD or enY such corporation or person for any reason whatsoever, 11 subject only to assumption of "complete operational control and direction of the system," by HRD4l only if Time Life should provide to be in default of its obligations. HRD 1 s interest in the system is the only formal leverage over Time Life; while theY have 2CJ1/, controlling interest in the 1 system, no provision l is made for stock to be made available to conmrunity residents, or for any form of community control over progrannning decisions, other than the above funds to be distributed to citizen organizations. These funds still remained under HRD control, since the developer was to specify which groups would receive the aoney.
User fees are not regulated, but "shall be determined by the company in its sole discretion. 11 42 Time Life also is granted complete control over programming and operations.
Only three channels are set aside for community generated programs, subject to censorship by Time Life. Studio expenses are to be paid by the comnrunity groups using them, rather than by the operator. No provision is made for free Bel'Vice to educational or municipal institutions. 4lAgreement, Sec. 8(d), pp. 8-9. 42 Agreement, p. 5. coverage is limited only to a five mile circle with its center in Columbia. No provision is made for extension to the rest of Howard County, lower in residential density and less likely to be economically viable. (This fact probably contributed to the differences in thinking with respect to rights-of-way; naturally, if a system were to be extended iJltO the rest of the County, a much larger percentage of the rights-of-way would be under county contro:J+ .• ) t Richard Krolik, Time · Life's representative in Columbia, made a formal distinction between the type of system which they were trying to set up and cable television: "We crune to Columbia because we wanted to experiment, to do research on the kinds of things people are looking for in a communications system. We had no intention of putting in standard minimum service in Columbia. 11 43 Even when Time Life was trying to 11 live wi thtt the franchise ordinance, they requested a second, unregulated cable on Which they would offer various experimental services on a 11 pay !V" basis. This attempt, plus various statements of Krolik "We will create an opportunity to test whether the citizens of Columbia representing the new cities and new life styles of America will support new types of TV programming, 11 44 and "The l'eason we are here is to innovate these things and find out 43i3altimore News American, August 10, 1972.
OolUDtb 4~i chard Krolik, "Cable Television Comes to Columbia," p: 22 .ia Todaz, Vol. 4, No. 1, (January, 1971/December, 1970 if' t}ley can be sold. We make no bones about it, u45 and "Among t}le elements which we should bear in mind is the essential role of the developer; he acquires the land and then salts it with only as many amenities as he absolutely has to in order to make it attractive for sale. All developers with whom I 1 ve talked look on CATV as simply another attraction which they assume some other financial entity will bid on and finance, like service stations, restaurants, offi9e buildings, etc., 11 4· 6 t __ lead to the conclusion that Time Life was interested in using Columbia as a test market for their system experiments, and HRD was interested in the system only in so far as it would help them sell homes. Thus, assured of 2(Jfo of the profits, and relieved of the responsibility for operating or maintaining the 11stem, HRD was willing to support Time Life in whatever venture they cared to conduct. The CTVC now has an informal agreement with HRD that theil' decisions will be backed by HRD: "Before we negotiate the l'ights-of-way in Columbia we will assure ourselves that the community has an effective and meaningful role in Cable TV 4~Interview with Norm.an Winkler, October, 1972. 51nia CTVC has itself been accused o.f secrecy in its dealings with the public, particularly at the time when they were negotiating with operators themselves for a publically owned franchise. Certain of their surveys, the "Kirkley survey" in particular, which contacted various institutions to t aee how they could use cable services, have never been revealed o the public. Some citizens feel that the CTVC is 11 in for a Piece of the action" for themselves · in the cable situation, and not really acting in the best interests of the community. is prepared at all for cable. 11 53 The fact that the Columbia citizens group is acting alone, with no responsibility to HRD or any of the institutions involved in planning for the advent of the system means that this kind of public involvement and planning is effectively impossible. T11e last minute move for citizen control, the Barnett proposal for village board applications for the franchise, was opposed by HRD. According to O ne account, Spear, speaking for HRD, saidt that "CA cannot be ( . used as a financing vehicle for CATV," and "even if CA were to approve the idea, HRD would veto it. 11 54 The "hands off 11 policy, the disinterest in tying cable TV into future institutional planning, and the lack of support tor citizen ventures may all be the result of the fact that mm does not even feel that CATV will be a f'inancial success in Columbia under the current regulation. While Spear in a press conf'erence stated that 11 we have great confidence that CATV ••• is too important to the community not to be here, "55.
Ditch in a recent interview declared: " I think they' 11 have 5 3 rnterview with Alan Ray, March 16, 1973. One group in Columbia, the Imagination Foundation, a non-profit corporation organized by a group of Antioch students and faculty, have been ha tr,ing to initiate cable experiments within the connnunity. They  Recommendations for studies of cable's implementation were made bY the Task Force, as indicated above, and by the 1972 Columbia Governance Conference, which made the fol~owing recommendation:

5.S
t Columbia should have a community wide communication network. The need for a •non-political," internal capability to transmit information between community components, the citizen, and our organizations is apparent; many frustrations and difficulties could be positively diverted if as needed" information were systematically available. Potential communication is being lost while our growth patterns increase both our communication needs and the complexity for future network development. Informal systems of ten currently utilized are being overtaxed and rendered immeasurably ineffective. The potential for cable TV in establishing such a network is unlimited and should be explored at this stage in our growth.
They further recommend: 1) that an analysis of current community communication be undertaken by informed experts in order to determine present level of effectiveness, and to recommend models for effective communication as Columbia and its communications needs grow. Existing systems appear to be ill-prepared for growth patterns for proliferating groups, organizations and institutions. Already saturation, strangulation, and overlap appear to be established as communications precedents.
2) this analysis should lead to practical recommendations for both existing and future (projected) communications needs.

3) both demographic and subjective data
should be drawn upon in order to effect realistic and creative analyses and recommendations .57 79 There is no evidence to suggest that any such studies are currently being conducted within HRD. Perhaps the se l e ction of one of the current applicants for the cable franchise by the County Council, negotiations o~ th~ Columbia rights-ofway, and installation of the first portions of the system will stimulate such a plan to prepare for the day when the system at last becomes operational.
1 57 First Columbia Conference on Community Governance, It is the conclusion of this paper that the cormnunioations planning process was insurficient either to influence communications system development in Columbia, including both the cable system and the other devices mentioned, from its beginnings to the present or to guide thay development in the t tuture. The several reasons for this failure can be synthesized from the preceeding discussion.
First, the communications goals are not clearly defined at the outset. No specific study was done to analyze communications problems or needs at the outset, and the rather vague statements of Withey were the primary initial guide. As mentioned above, the goals are contained in a number of documents, and they are never coordinated into a specific set of recom-11endations. One cause for this failure is that the work group documents were never intended to serve as plans: "We said to the group that we did not want a report at the end; we did not care about reaching an agreement ••• do not worry about Whether it is feasible or not." 1 A second cause for the lack of definition is the fact that not all the documents setting goals were even part of the Rouse Company's own planning effort. Rouse himself admits that BRD did not even intend to build a cable system for Columbia 1 Midura, ~· cit., p. 173. before the independent publication of the Stone report. While the stone report aroused enthusiasm ·in the Rouse Company, its recommendations were never made a formal policy and no attempt was made either to tie the recommendations into existing institutional structures and connnunications needs, or to cr eate new institutions as recommended by the report, although, as Thomas points, out, the report was "milked" by HRD for its public relations value. i'

t •
A last cause of not defining the communications goals is the possibility that they were never intended to be carried out in a systematic way. As the Task Force reports: "We found very little common knowledge of the details of Columbia's goals and the policies to achieve them. The operational objectives used in this report were developed only after being requested by the Task Force, and it was reported that a considerable resolution of conflicts was necessary before the final docu-•at emerged. 112 Since the conmrunications goals were never clearly defined at the outset, and since not all were implemented, the planning process can be criticized for a lack of comprehensiveness. As explaine above, the institutional, indirect, goals are implemented more successfully than the technological, system-oriented goals, probably due to the "environmental determinism 11 of the developer, the philosophy that 11 the fundamental discipline of the Plan had to be to magnify every opportunity to create a 2 Columbia Task Force, op. cit., pp. 117-118.  Mandelbaum, Community and Communications, ~ew York: Norton, 1972), p. 225. requirements of a system capable of carrying these messages, and 3) explore the possibilities of public/private cooperation.
In the case of Columbia, this latter function would involve cooperation with whichever cable operator is granted the franchise. Village Boards study with respect to how CATV can be used to publicize activities and involve residents in community governance.
Howard County study with respect to how CATV can be used to further Howard County/Columbia relations and common interests.
Library and school facilities study, with the organizations involved.
~L. L. Johnson, et. al. editors, Cable Communications in the Da. ton Miami Valle :-i3asIC Re ort, {Santa Monica, California: 11 and Corporation, January, 1972 , pp. 5-15 -5-17. Dayton has an ombudsman" program similar to Columbia's although the role of the ombudsman is more structured; ~omplaints to the ombudsman's Office have been logged --in its first three months the office ~ceived 460 complaints. The Dayton study suggests that cable could be used to give the ombudsman more access to media time, ~~ving the public more exposure to his activities; and allowing m to describe certain cases to the public in detail. Two-way cable could enable the public to respond to the ombudsman on the !i~t. The end result would be that 1 in-depth television coverage c l ~rovide a better understanding of a given issue and thus u~ntribute to improved . service." Ditch reported that HRD would hee cable to report current planning in the community, although ne ~id not mention the developer's representative in this cone on, (March 16, 1973). On a broader level, the planner in any city can perform seve~al functions which will aid in integrating the communications planning process with other city planning considerations.
First, the communications planner must attempt to define substantive, long range communications needs and goals for his community. While some of these goals will depend upon the needs or the community itself, it is possible here to posit some overall goals which would app ly to any communications system. As In general, the overall goals of a connnunications system in any governmental jurisdiction can be divided into two categories: to encourage and preserve freedom of expression; and to increase access to information fi' or all citizens. Of CODJmunications "is intended, in one sense, to encourage con-flict11 but to contain it within the political system.

11
Thomas Emerson, "Communication, Freedom of Expression, 11 ~g~ntific American, Vol. 227, No. 3, (September, 1972), pp. 163- The second goal, that of access to information, also iJ11Plies several sub-categories. The first, that of access to illformation itself, implies making available to each individual all the information which he needs to function both in public and in private. Of course, this implies fostering a free press and a variety of communications media, but it also urges a certain governmental policy as well. A second aspect of this goal is access to the means of comnrunication ~hemselves. While I newspapers and broadcast television have met this goal to a certain extent, cable TV can here play a vital role, through its multiplicity of channels and the possibilities for cheap programming on its public access channels. Finally, this category of access to information, as implied above, promotes a definition of the responsibilities of the government to its citizens; in this sense, the right to have information is connected to the right to use it to affect governmental decisions.
These, then, are broad goals for a communications system; the next step must be to refine these goals into operational objectives to serve as the basis for system design.
This process involves several steps; the first, as mentioned above, is that suggested by Mandelbaum --a collection of requirements of all relevant agencies and groups, and a description of the technological and organizational requirements of a system capable of carrying these messages. For example, in the field of health care, an operational objective might be the desire for physicians to handle emergency calls at home.
This would require special links between the doctor' s h ome and the hospital wi th which he is connected.
In a new town, this function of goal fornru.lation will be tied to the planning for physical structure of the community and plans for governance and citizen participation. In an established community, existing institutions will be involved.
This study of community needs should be combined with contin- Prospective owners usually offer a mix of the f ollowing features: lower subscriber rates, h i gher fees to the city, greater ability to f inance and build the sy stem, 1 willingness to operate at a loss for some time, faster syst em const ruction, more efficient operation, 1 free 1 educational or nrunicipal services, servi ce to low-income areas, better local origination facilities and programming , more channels, h i gher-quality service, new services, greater resp onsiveness to t h e public, f aster system up dating and improvement, greater innovation, nondiscriminatory use of cable channels, more sens itivity to local issues, more local hiring or job training , more minority group ownership, management, employment and programming, more equitable rate of return for private investors.J.J+ However, they caution that: M ost of these value choices are ind~pendent of the form of ownership. The trade-off between lower subscriber fees and more expensive local orig ination facilities must be made whether the cable system is owned by a large corporation, a non-profit group, or the city itself. The public benefits from cable will be determined as much by the local franchise · --which must deal explicitly with trade-offs among the criteria listed above --as by the form of ownership.15 ~ L. L. Johnson,et. al.,editors,~· cit., l5Ibid., p. 10-8.
A comparison of the various forms of ownership as de:t'ined in the Baer and Camph study is found in Appendix VIII; the point is that the planner must approach this issue armed with the specific functions he wishes the system to perform, and with a franchise ordinance that includes these criteria as limits to any owner's use of the system.
Finally, once a conrnunications system is operating in a community, the planner should be respon~ible for evaluating I I its operation. Such an evaluation is currently being conducted by the Rand Corporation for the system operated by the M e tro- ------ the need for integration of communications planning into the more traditional planning process, and the specific conmrunications goals of freedom of expression and access to information have been set forth above. New comnrunications technology is promising in that it can achieve both of these ends; however, the problem of deciding exactly how these goals are to be achieved remains the major obstacle in using the technology effectively. This decision requires careful study of specific local problems and conditions, and close involvement with residents and g overning bodies.
The advent of cable technology has certainly provided the impetus for such study, more than ever in the past. This is perhaps its major contribution to urban life; the burden of making this contribution rests with the planner. To do this, he nru.st not limit his actions to utilizing the technology, but Dl'llst question the basis on which the use of the technology now rests and create a new basis which is responsive to the needs and problems of the citizens he serves.
10. HOUSEHOLD MAIL AND MESSAGES. Let~ers and notes transmitted directly to or from the house by means of home facsimile machines.
tl. MASS llAIL AND DIRECT ADVERTISING MAIL. Higher output, larger-sized pages, color output may be necessary to attract the attention of the recipient--otherwise similar to item 10 above.
12. ANSWERING SERVICES. Stored incoming messages or notes whom to call--possibly computer logic recognizing emergency situation and diverting the call.
13. GROCERY PRICE LIST, INFORMATION AND ORDERING. Grocery price list is used as an example of,. up-to-the-minute, updated inforaation about peristiable foodstuffs. Video color display may be needed to examine selected merchandise. Ordering follows.
14. ACCESS TO COMPANY FILES. Information in files is coded for security; regularly updated files are available with cross-reference indicating the code where more detailed information is stored. Synthesis also may be available.
15. FARES AND TICKET RESERVATION. As provided by travel agencies now but aore coaprehensive and faster. Cheapest rates, information regarding the differences between carriers with respect to service, menus, etc. may be available.
16. PAST AND FORTHCOMING EVENTS. Events, dates of events, and their brief description; short previews of future theater plays; and recordings of past events.
17. CORRESPONDENCE SCK>OL. Taped or live high school, university, and vocational courses available on request with an option to either audit or graduate. Course on TV, paper support on facsiaile.
18. DAILY CALENDAR AND REMINDER ABOUT APPOINTMENTS. Prerecorded special appointments and regularly occurring appointments stored as a progrllllllled reminder. In addition to these gaps in the data, there are other limitations in a aethodology which rel~es heavily upon data ( from interviews and personal contacts. Respondents may be biased, or they may simply not be telling the truth. However, since the purpose of the interviews was precisely to identify issues and points of view of the participants, since a cross section of the participants was cont acted, and since published data generally support the verbal recDrd, these limitations have been judged by the author to be at least partially overcome.
Initial processes should include relating to all aspects of the community or at least as auch of the community as possible.
In short, think of the co11111unication potential in any aspect of development.
Comaunicate a set of values that encourages acceptance of differences.
Communicate a willingness to share and solve shared problems.
p. 6: What I aa basically proposing is that human interactions be started now and maintained. Human interaction is the core of any cOlllllUnication facility and the content of any communications interest.

Gans:
p.3-4: Columbia should aim for a social structure which ...• d) reduces social and physical isolation and provides for the lonely, the culturally different minority resident, and what M. Foote calls the unelected ..•• /and/ f) recognizes the inevitability of comaunity conflict and seeks to cope with the undesirable aspects of such conflict by •••. iii) encouraging political coamunication and feedback so as to prevent the distorting and scapegoating that result fro• poor communication and thus interfere with the solution of probleas ••• p. 12: Encourage overt discussion of all conflicts which can be aided by maximizing feedback and inter as well as intra-institutional communication as much as possible. Michael: p. 10: Provision must be made for the greatest possible interchange of information and ideas within the community and easy access to information from the state, region, nation and world. Communications is fundamental to communal life.
p. 20 : The community should be designed so that its leaders may respond and sense comaunications in many ways with its citizens and vice versa for ~he purposes of information, education, recreationt and economic growth and the enlargement of a sense of self. Especially, important, Columbia should seek to support and enlarge its citizens by supporting and generating a "sense of COlllJllUnity." p. 22: This community should be designed so that people can find in it exceptional opportunities to apply and stimulate their aspirations to give of themselves as well as to fulfill their needs to be responded to as persons, as neighbors ••..

Stone:
p. 5: There is recommended for Columbia, development of a total c011J1Unication and information service program .••• p. 6: Columbia City may enjoy a significant advantage by designing its communications service within a total systems concept rather than as a series of uncoordinated facilities ••• A comprehensive plan should be drafted now regardless of when it is planned to achieve implementation. Gans: An intelligence service should be developed that reports to the developer what is going on "at the scene" as well as what his sensitivities ought to be. There is no reason for this to be secretive. People should know how to get word to responsible people even when they do not have direct access. But some channel should be available.
p.12: Another possibility is to set up what earlier work group sessions called "the King's representative," which might be a group of coaaunity members from all political parties who would have the responsibility of opening up those issues that are in danger of being driven underground and airing them.

Michael:
p.B-1: Arrangements are desirable to enhance conuaunications between the developer personnel and the citizens, to demonstrate to the citizens that the developers really are interested in feedback from them and to maintain awareness and sensitivity to citizen attitudes and needs. p.R-8: p.B-2: It would be desirable, perhaps, if CRD or the CID introduce, from the very beginning of the collllllunity, the Scandinavian institution of the Ombudsman, the King's Representative. It is his or her task ..• to be recognized as the readily accessible representative of CRD or the CID to whom citizens can make complaints regarding matters which it is the responsibility of CRD or the CID to deal with. Through these representatives, the complaint or request is conveyed directly to CRD or the CID for direct action; no bureaucratic foot dragging, no disappearance into the maze of organizational hierarchy ••• These representatives should move around, but should be located in the villages.
CRD should have specially trained and explicitly defined representative in the villag~s.~.to whom the citizen can express his grievances or his suggestions ••• regarding matters which are CRD's responsibility.
Village Centers: Withey: p. 5: Establish facilities for informal communication and activity while recreation, learning, shopping, eating, etc. is going on. Michael: p.R-37:The village center should be the prime coaaunity communications center as well.
p.R-38:There should be an office of the CID/CA in each of the villages. Two of its major functions should be to convey information for the CID to the village, and to act as the "king's representativd'in the village. Symbolically, the office should be clustered with the health services, the library, and the village meeting rooms.
p.R-50:Displays linked by telephone to the appropriate CID offices questionnaires filled out on the spot, interviews ••• and all such means should be regularly and systeaatically used to generate, feedback and to demonstrate that CID wants it.
There should be a village information center, which provides 1) information about CRD plans with respect to the whole community in general, and the village in particular, 2) notices of opportunities for individual and village participation, 3) schedules of events, 4) demonstrations of new resources available in the village and other parts of the co . . unity.
p.R-48:Appropriate health education displays should be located here so that those using the Village Center's other facilities are likely to see thea.
Face-to-Face Contact: Withey: p. 5: Stimulate, where possible, the development of healthy interaction in ••• comaercial neighborhood street fairs ••• churches, clubs, schools, and similar coamunity facilities for coaaunication and interaction. Michael: p.B-15: (Store manager).... He coul~ b'e defined as a useful and direct feedback coJIJllunications link between the neighborhood and the CID.
Operational Goals, Physical/Technological, Direct: Newspapers: Withey: p. 4: Local or nearby facilities should be regarded as potential partners. There would appear to be no strong reason at present to own or buy a newspaper or broadcasting facility. If the role of the developer is to help and encourage and stiaulate ••• auch of this mood would be left open to doubt by comaunication ownership.
p. 5: Accept the Washington and Baltimore papers as the papers for international and national news.

Gans:
Help build up a local paper (or papers) as strong local media.
p. 12: A weekly column in the local paper, and a program on the TV station might be set up to discuss the rumors that are current, explain why they caae about, provide information that would eliminate thea. Michael: p.Al-2:Eventually there should be a weekly magazine or daily newspaper focused on community activities.

Telephones:
Michael: P.R-6: Information on community activities and special events should be available on a direct dialing basis as should I' I I be health education information ••• the library should also provide special reference services by phone.
p. 14: A T & T and its various state subsidiaries are providing an increasing number of colllllUnications services for the home. These include extension telephones, automatic dialing devices, interc01D&unication systeaa within the home •••• These services are available now or will be supplied in the near future. A question presents itself as to a division of effort. With what functions should this communications plan concern itself and what services should be left to common carriers? For example, it would be desirable to install a syste• of interconnecting circuits when a house is constructed.
Television/Cable Television: Withey: p. 5: Help build up and develop local TV services that serve community, civic and school functions as well as the cultural, sports, news, and entertainaent functions that are traditional. Gans: p. · 12: A program on the TV station aight be set up to discuss the ruaors that are current •••• Michael: p. 23: The comaunity should be linked by a closed circuit TV system which would tie homes and public resources together.
p.R-5: A particularly effective way to accomplish the above listed purposes would be through a community-wide closed circuit TV system, produced in the community and used by the co . . unity for COllllUnity purposes.
P.R-6: The advantages seem so great that it should be planned to wire every dwelling to receive closed circuit TV. It should be connected to the major sources of community activities and education.
p.A-2: An extensive prograa should be established using CATV as a means for drawing them (housewives) out. At first, such TV programs will be used by them to enrich their home environments during their isolation, but if the substance of the programs is planned effectively, this exposure should draw them out into the community. p. 3: Is there a possibility that in Columbia there can be demonstrated a new approach to provision of public communication and information services including perform~ ance of the library function, an approach which may truly "measure up" to all requirements as well as prove economically feasible?
As new service units and pr~graas are planned, what differences, if any, should exist between service offered Columbia residents and to those living elsewhere in the county?
There is recommended for Columbia development of a total communication and information service program ••• the program is to be established under new adainistrative arrangements working in harmony with existing authorities but providing with new economic efficiency the full range of communications services needed.
Columbia City may enjoy a significant advantage by designing its collllllunications service within a total systems concept rather than as a series of uncoordinated facilities.
p. 20: In Columbia a new approach should be devised for administration of public communication and information services. Such an approach would be represented in the establishment of a new non-profit corporation (or subdivision of the proposed Columbia Park and Recreation Service Corporation) to be called the Columbia Colllllunication Service Agency.
p. 23: As a means of launching the effort, as soon as possible, funds should be sought to support a major study in depth on the costs of operating the service proposed, as well as design of suitable structures appropriate for housing the various prograas.
Finally, whatever else may be involved it is hoped that Community Research and Development, Incorporated will take the steps needed immediately to insure installation of the necessary CATV antennas, cable and other equipment so that in the saae way water and sewer service will become available, communications lines may also be tapped.
Printing Facilities: Michael: p.A-1: There should be an organized inexpensive (or free) facility to handle the printing needs of the community for notices, posters, achoo~ papers, special interest group publications, etc. · These quotations have been taken from the following documents: