Chicago Issues: The Enduring Power of a Plan Daniel H. Burnham [1846-1912] believed in the force of ideas, especially in the force of big ideas embodied in the living power of a printed document. The result of many years of devoted labor which he donated to Chicago, the city he loved, was the Plan of Chicago, published in 1909. In summary, the six goals — a lakefront setting, a unified system of highways and streets, the consolidation of railways, an extensive park system, a cultural center, a systematic arrangement of the parts — made a staggering plan, daring in scope, fastidious in the details. What did happen, what did not happen, and what may happen in the future? [Answers to each of these questions follow in detail in the book.] Burnham's ideas have not died. Over the last seventy years text books and college lecturers always have referred to the Plan as a milestone in the history of architecture and city planning. Local architects and historians have kept the ideas alive by vigilant discussions. Some speak of finishing the lake front scheme, of extending the system to the south of the city and adding the green off-shore islands, or of creating the great piers. The spirit of city planning which Burnham ignited is now being carried forward by a different generation of city planner, the urban designer more aware of the personal and social needs of cities. In the final analysis, our great debt to Burnham is the legacy of optimism in the spirit of man that it can be done.