Moses envisioned parks as active recreation facilities while reformers favored rustic preservation

Evidence

Moses saw a different vision. He had noticed meadows back in those woods that seemed just made to order for baseball diamonds, and level spaces with only a few trees that could be cleared for tennis courts. Why, a portion of the biggest tract, the one between Lynbrook and Rockville Centre, seemed almost made to order for a golf course. And why should people be restricted to looking at the ponds and lakes? Why couldn’t they swim in them? That great reservoir alone could cool thousands of sweating youngsters from the city! And there were so many acres available that even after all the facilities were laid out, there would still be vast stretches of woods that could be left untouched except for rustic hiking trails. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 710

Categorization

• XREF: Sets up why Moses’s parks (Jones Beach, pools) diverge from the Central Park rustic-preservation model — a theme Caro develops at length. — connects to: Moses invented the idea that parks should host active recreation, not just passive nature — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 710; Robert Moses reframed American parks from passive nature to active recreation — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 732; Moses conceived the Jones Beach park as an integrated traffic and recreation system. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 978

Broader Connections

• Robert Moses reframed American parks from passive nature to active recreation #corroborates (0.95) — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 732
• Moses invented the idea that parks should host active recreation, not just passive nature #corroborates (0.92) — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 710