16Hit 1600
Craft and StructureMediumFunction of a concession in an urban planning text

Craft and Structure practice question

Converting vacant lots into pocket parks is not cheap — grading, soil, and planting can cost a city hundreds of thousands of dollars per block. Yet the investment returns more than greenery: studies in several cities link cleaned-and-greened lots to measurable drops in nearby gun violence and to rising attendance at adjacent schools.

Which choice best describes the function of the first sentence in the text as a whole?

  1. A. It acknowledges a drawback of the program before the text presents its benefits.Correct
  2. B. It states the main conclusion of the text.
  3. C. It introduces an unrelated objection to city budgets.
  4. D. It summarizes the program's long-term results.

Answer: A. It acknowledges a drawback of the program before the text presents its benefits.

The first sentence concedes the real cost of converting lots, after which the text pivots ('Yet…') to the gains — a concession preceding the case in favor.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. It states the main conclusion of the text.
The conclusion comes later, with the benefits; the first sentence grants a weakness.
C. It introduces an unrelated objection to city budgets.
The cost of this program is directly relevant, not an unrelated budget matter.
D. It summarizes the program's long-term results.
Results appear after the first sentence, not in it.

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