Urban Renewal: Neighborhood Revitalization

Hartford is divided in 17 neighborhoods each of one had a diversity of cultures and history that makes the city a melting pot rich city. I visited some of the neighborhoods during three different days and different hours, the two neighborhoods that impacted me and that I will describe in this paper are: Downtown Hartford, and Frog Hollow. This neighborhoods are close to each other, but the differences are evident and I will explain each one of them.

When a neighborhood is gentrified it will not only change the image of it, but also the services available there (Al-Kodmany 2011, 62-63). In other words, gentrification does not only have an impact on the physical aspect of the land, but also the resources that lie there. During the 90s, the Near West Side neighborhood located near Loop, an up-scale neighborhood, sought drastic changes within the area. The changes in racial demographics in the Near West Side indicated that the health risks that affected minorities dropped in the past decade (1992-2002) (Al-Kodmany 2011,

Imagine the home you lived in for decades, being knocked down for a football stadium, shopping center, or new housing. That is gentrification. Webster’s dictionary defines gentrification as “the process of renovating and improving a house or district so that it conforms to middle-class taste” (“Gentrification”). Gentrification is not a new subject, as it has been occurring for centuries, dating back to medieval times, constructing forts over villages. Today, gentrification typically occurs in urban settings where buildings are vacant, and most of the residents live in poverty. Gentrification can destroy families, communities, and history. This topic is often at the center of debate for politics and town gossip, as developers are disrupting the current residents that reside in the vicinity. Gentrification occurs all around us, having pros and cons for each project. How is it ethical to kick individuals out of their home, and community for another’s benefit? Questions arise as the development and takeover of land often displaces individuals, their entire families, and livelihood. Temple University is a prime example of gentrification as well as other wealthy organizations, including football teams from the National Football League. The practice of gentrification comes to symbolize the new development and demolition of individual’s lives while trying to benefit the parties involved.

For many years the city of New London in southeastern Connecticut had gone through vast economic decline, so much so that by 1990 the State had declared the City a “distressed municipality”. Things continued to decline for the City when in 1996 the U.S. closed the Naval Undersea Warfare Center which had employed over 1,500 people (Kelo v. New London, 2005). By 1998 the unemployment rate for the city of New London was twice that of the state of Connecticut and the population had plummeted to below 24,000 residents.

Some may object that the changes occurring in Newark are signs of gentrification, and not revitalization. Gentrification is merely the act of changing the society and sometimes even displacing residents, resulting in isolation and depression. The reason why some people believe that gentrification is taking place in Newark is because of the racial tension. In the article A Revival in Newark, but some worry it ‘Not For Us’, it is written that “ Newark’s new chapter also has a racial tinge: The city has been dominated by its large African-American population after decades of white residents leaving for the suburbs, but many of the people drawn by the city’s resurgence are white.” Although most of Newark is populated by African-Americans, many whites are appealed by our city’s renewal by making our community better. This statement may include how different races/ethnicities are attracted to Newark, but it doesn’t mention how families get isolated because of the changes in the society. Because of this important detail, it makes a clear difference that Newark is going through revitalization. Because of the fine line between, revitalization and

When evaluating urban renewal projects, Professor Steven Cord found that “By far most of the housing destroyed was low cost housing,” (184). The statistics in Kelo also showed that 56 percent of nonwhites and 38 percent of whites displaced by urban renewal were qualified to receive public housing due to their low incomes. Further, the destruction of housing forces individuals to seek relocation housing. Relocation housing is not guaranteed to be readily available or to be superior to the housing destroyed (Cord 185). Eminent domain has broken up neighborhoods and forced out longtime residents (Cord 184).

An issue that that was discussed in class that was resonant to me was on the issue of gentrification. Gentrification is known as the process of renovating and renewing deteriorating communities that are often home of low income families in order to conform to the taste of the middle class. This concept has been taking place for years in a variety of locations all over the country such as San Francisco, New York City and even Los Angeles. I live in an area in Los Angeles known as highland park which is a location that has slowly been gentrified and has altered the lives of many people I know around me. The neighborhood that I am from has slowly been changing due to the fact that it is so close to a very prestigious and well known private college

It is inevitable that a city, regardless of its history, demographics, or economics will be subject to some types of change throughout its history. Cities which are resistant to change and redevelopment completely are unlikely to be cities which thrive and succeed. Nonetheless, the process of urban redevelopment of underused or underutilized areas to entice a more affluent tax base, known as gentrification is an issue which has been a constant battle for cities and its citizens for decades. Portland, Maine is no exception to this rule, as many neighborhoods within the city of have seen periods of rapid redevelopment which we would now call gentrification, and the effects of these changes, act as a blueprint for the active and future occurrences

Through listening to excerpts from the oral histories of former Fulton residents I learned the impact of urban renewal directly from a resident’s perspective. The effect of urban renewal on Fulton residents not only caused a division within the community but it destroyed resident’s childhood memories. In one of the excerpts Bernadette Tart Clark recalls growing up in Fulton, and mentions how hurtful it has been to know that the history of her early child hood has been erased. She stated that it seemed as if her childhood didn’t even exist. She also discussed the unity of the community prior to urban renewal and stated that even with the new developments in the community, Fulton will never be the same.

Throughout the twentieth-century many individuals stepped up to recreate Boston’s South End. Before any sort of government was put into place, communities would travel to this land and make it theirs by incorporating their culture. Each society would build off each other, leading to the creation of a very diverse society. Edward Logue, an urban planner, public administrator, lawyer, politician and academic who took control in the construction of South End. BY attempting to “purify” the town, logue focused on wealth and success. Logue felt that a prosperous city would need an unified public, directly contradicting the diversity that laid throughout Boston. Logue was only concerned with beautifying Boston’s South End, ignoring the people’s needs

Though I didn’t complete my six hours, I suppose, the three hours I did had enough information and influence on my thoughts that I believe pointed me in the direction the assignment was made to. I went to a city council meeting, a few days ago, for this project, and I was lucky enough to go at a time where the council was over seeing some rather important decisions that I seemed to have a lot of personal opinion on. To try to answer the questions that this write up is made to answer, I learned that the council discusses and debates new bill and local measures that affect the town and community of the Fort Bragg area. I was lucky to get into a very interesting topic of creating a Sanctuary City within Fort Bragg, thus creating a new Haven

Hi Nick, I like the approach that you are taking by identifying what the neighborhoods are doing to keep it safe and see the conditions of the homes. There are a lot of different outcomes and just because it works in one area, does not mean it will work in another. Although, studying what Portland neighborhoods are doing that Gresham neighborhoods are not would be one approach, even thought it will most likely have a different effect. I think it is a great idea to get the other local police departments together to learn and share ideas on what works in their community. This way the police officers can learn new tactics that can try implementing into their

Gentrification has become the sticky subject when it comes to the revitalization efforts of New Orleans. People are still suffering from the effects of Hurricane Katrina, and it will take the efforts of community leaders, politicians, developers, and the people of the community to come together to work as one to make revitalization efforts successful and work for everyone.

Urban restoration now and again satisfies the trusts of its unique advocates; - it has been evaluated by lawmakers, urban organizers, metro pioneers, and inhabitants - it has assumed a verifiably critical part. Also, urban recharging can have numerous constructive outcomes. Renewed lodging stock may be a change in quality; it might expand thickness and lessen sprawl; it may have monetary advantages and enhance the worldwide financial aggressiveness of a downtown area's. It might, in a few examples, enhance social and social convenience, and it might likewise enhance open doors for wellbeing and observation.

Regeneration refers to in the investment of capital in the revival of old and declining urban areas either by improving what is left behind or clearing away and rebuilding. Often it may be accompanied by reimaging to change the dominant perception of an urban area. Such regeneration efforts can be seen in the town of Syracuse in New York. Between 1970s to 1990s, it started to experience urban decline. Economic decline happened as a result of deindustrialisation. As Syracuse was previously the largest manufacturer of bicycles and typewrites, technological advancement has led to deindustrialisation and massive unemployment. 6000 people were retrenched from 1964 to 1984 and 9000 from 1984 to 1989. In addition the population was declining with