I think it may indeed be an illusion. Paris, for example, was extremely planned.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haussmann%27s_renovation_of_Pa...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haussmann%27s_renovation_of_Pa...
I didn’t know about this but it makes a lot of sense. Those enormous boulevards are clearly not original nor unplanned.
[1] https://www.unjourdeplusaparis.com/en/paris-reportage/reconn...