ABSTRACT
In 1923 the Amsterdam local authority set up the Garden City Commission. Its task was to investigate what type of urban expansion was most desirable. The commission was comprised of the city aldermen for public housing and public works, heads of city departments, architects and professors. Represented were the national department of Home Affairs, the provincial public works department, the Dutch state railway company and the Institute for Public Housing and Urban Planning. The report went on to examine the pros and cons of centralization and decentralization, using four main arguments: A major argument for the decentralized urban form was the health of the residents. The urban core was densely built, with people massed together who had insufficient sunlight, fresh air and opportunities for exercise. The commission's report may have been unclear in its conclusions on urban expansion, but the newly created Department of Urban Development chose from its inception in 1928, chose expansion immediately adjacent to the existing city.
