Abstract
The present text proposes a historical review of the development and implantation of the first projects of the City of San Paulo Improvements and Freehold Land Co. Ltd., later known as Cia. City, together with its authorship, in view of the lacuna observed in the initial process of the company’s operation, between 1912 and 1915. Jardim América was considered the first project implemented by Cia. City in São Paulo and was developed in 1915. During the years prior to this, the company commercialized small previously urbanized lots, similar to many other real estate companies operating in São Paulo at the time. The review and collation of primary sources have demonstrated when the company’s technical framework began operating in São Paulo, and the initial guidelines that marked the design and implementation of the first projects, namely, Pacaembu, Butantã, Alto da Lapa and the Garden City, named Jardim América in 1917.
Keywords:
São Paulo; 20th century; Urbanization; Cia. City; Joseph Bouvard; Garden-City
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Source: 
On the left, an advertisement for the City of San Paulo Improvements offering lots on the company's first three estates, together with offers with little added value, such as the sale of beds and mechanical services. On the right, an advertisement for the launch of Pacaembu in the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo, in January 1913, with a call to competition.Source:O Pirralho, January 25, 1913. Public Archive Collection at the O Estado de S. Paulo (left) and the O Estado de S. Paulo Collection (right).
The dotted lines represent the current design of the belvedere. In detail, the first indication of belvedere, in the plan published in the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo on January 7, 1913, as a continuation of Higienópolis Avenue, the then Martinho Prado Boulevard.Source:O Estado de S. Paulo Collection
The dotted lines represent the streets of the original design. The gray continuous line represents sections from the original project preserved in the new project, probably because they were in the works. The black continuous line shows the design of the implanted project. This drawing was produced by the author based on maps of the city of São Paulo from 1914 and 1930. Not to scale.
On the announcement is written: [Top] “Panoramic view on the estate at San Paulo. The grass street corners have all to be sown by hand”. [Bottom left] “The type of house being built” [Bottom right] “Showing the main road with subsidiary roads. Reference to the plan shows the contrast with rectangular streets on adjoining estates” The main street may be observed with secondary streets. And in relation to the plan, the contrast with the orthogonal streets of the neighboring estates is shown. Source: Photocopy. The Mervyn Miller collection, photographed by the author, 2015.
The dotted lines represent the original project. The gray continuous lines represent sections of the original project maintained within the new project, probably because work had already begun. The black continuous line represents the design of the implanted project. This drawing was produced by the author based on maps of the city of São Paulo from 1914 and 1916. Not to scale.