PORTALJABAR, BANDUNG CITY - There have been many testimonials scattered about the city of Bandung with its coolness and comfort. The concept of urban planning, which according to various sources has existed since the Dutch era, cannot escape one figure named Thomas Karsten.

Karsten was a Dutch engineer who contributed greatly to architecture and urban planning in Indonesia during the Dutch colonial period.

Most significantly, it integrates colonial urban environmental practices with local elements. This was referred to as a radical approach to spatial planning for Indonesia at that time.

Karsten's traces can be seen from several areas of the city, especially on the island of Java.

Citing Ghozi Akhsan Fatahillah's notes on the medium platform, a number of Karsten's 'masterpieces' can be found in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, the area around Jalan Ijen Malang, the Candi Baru area of Semarang, and also Bandung City.

Apart from these 4 spots, Karsten is also said to be a planner for the cities of Bogor, Surakarta and Palembang.

We can now enjoy traces of Karsten's urban planning ideas in the city of Bandung by visiting these spots:

Starting from Ganesha Park, Merdeka Park, Maluku Park, Ade Irma Suryani Traffic Park, or Gasibu Park.

Ghozi's note on the medium platform briefly explains the Garden City concept.

In the context of urban planning, this concept was initiated by Ebenezer Howard in his book "To-Morrow: A Peaceful Path to Realm Reform" (1898). The idea of a garden city was developed as a way to move towards a better urban civilization. This concept was initiated by Howard because he saw that the quality of life in European cities was deteriorating during the era of massive industrialization.

In general, a garden city has three main elements, namely decentralization, garden, and city. Here's a brief explanation:

- Decentralization is referred to as the social process of moving population and industry from dense urban centers to more distant areas. This means that not all activities in the city have to be concentrated in one place, but can be arranged so that they can be spread across various areas.

- Garden (park) which offers a permanent "agricultural belt" in the outermost ring of a city area. This agricultural belt will later act as a "barrier" to further urban sprawl/expansion and also as a rural area for city residents.

- City which discusses land ownership and how the land is used by a city population. Howard argued that land in the city should be owned collectively by the community or city government, not by individuals or companies. The city government has control over the entire city area and regulates its use for public purposes.

Even so, Karsten's Garden City concept was not implemented purely by Karsten because he adapted the garden city concept to local wisdom conditions in Indonesia. This adjustment of the concept is called tropicalche staad.

The difference between the Tropical Staad concept and the Garden City is that the Tropical Staad is only used to organize residential areas so that it is only divided into residential zones and government office zones. Trade zones and industrial zones were not created in Dutch East Indies cities which used the Tropical Staad concept.

As mentioned above, a small part of Karsten's heritage in Bandung City includes parks such as Ganesha Park, Merdeka Park, Maluku Park, Ade Irma Suryani Traffic Park, or Gasibu Park. Maybe residents have already visited these locations?

Reflecting on the sophistication of urban design planning at that time, as a reminder to others, let's continue with the aspects that support comfort. Starting from maintaining these areas so that they remain comfortable and beautiful, amidst the dynamics of development.