Historic Preservation: Gentrification or Economic Development
Historic preservation has traditionally been simply restoring historically significant architectural or geographical sites for aesthetic value or for the benefit of future generations to better understand the ways and styles of the past. As the National Trust for Historic Preservation explains, “when historic buildings and neighborhoods are torn down or allowed to deteriorate, a part of our past disappears forever. When that happens, we lose history that helps us know who we are, and we lose opportunities to live and work in the kinds of interesting and attractive surroundings that older buildings can provide” (NTHP web site).
Recently the use of historic preservation has also begun to be viewed by cities and towns as a means to economic development and urban renewal. According to advocates, historic preservation has aided in local economic and community revitalization, increased tourism and employment, and preserved regional history, culture, and pride. However, historic preservation has often lacked public support due to a negative reputation. Some see it, not as a means to revitalizing local communities, but rather, as simply driving the problems further under the surface or into other areas, namely, as a means to gentrification. This reputation is not entirely unfounded, as there have been instances when gentrification was exactly the intended goal.
There is a fundamental dichotomy and tension within economic development policies in general, and specifically with historic preservation, between the need to bring in wealthy residents and new businesses and the likelihood that it will drive out or alienate low to moderate-income local residents. Historic preservation will, of course, not work for every struggling area in the nation, but for those that can use it, alone or in conjunction with other methods of economic development it is important to recognize that the only way to have truly sustainable economic development and not simply economic growth at the expense of local community and quality of life issues is to find a balance between this dichotomy and accommodate all members of a community.
Social and Economic Benefits
Organizations such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the US department of Housing and Urban Development, and their state and local counterparts are currently emphasizing the benefits of historic preservation as a method of urban revitalization. According to Judith Kremen, Executive Director of the Baltimore County Historical Trust, historic preservation benefits local economies because it: “creates a
Another noteworthy urban sociologist that’s invested significant research and time into gentrification is Saskia Sassen, among other topical analysis including globalization. “Gentrification was initially understood as the rehabilitation of decaying and low-income housing by middle-class outsiders in central cities. In the late 1970s a broader conceptualization of the process began to emerge, and by the early 1980s new scholarship had developed a far broader meaning of gentrification, linking it with processes of spatial, economic and social restructuring.” (Sassen 1991: 255). This account is an extract from an influential book that extended beyond the field of gentrification and summarizes its basis proficiently. In more recent and localized media, the release the documentary-film ‘In Jackson Heights’ portrayed the devastation that gentrification is causing as it plagues through Jackson Heights, Queens. One of the local businessmen interviewed is shop owner Don Tobon, stating "We live in a
There are many examples of cities reforming itself over time, one significant example is Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. More than a hundred years after the discovery of gold that drew thousands of migrants to Vancouver, the city has changed a lot, and so does one of its oldest community: Downtown Eastside. Began as a small town for workers that migrants frequently, after these workers moved away with all the money they have made, Downtown Eastside faced many hardships and changes. As a city, Vancouver gave much support to improve the area’s living quality and economics, known as a process called gentrification. But is this process really benefiting everyone living in Downtown Eastside? The answer is no. Gentrification towards DTES(Downtown Eastside) did not benefit the all the inhabitants of the area. Reasons are the new rent price of the area is much higher than before the gentrification, new businesses are not community-minded, and the old culture and lifestyle of the DTES is getting erased by the new residents.
In this course we have learned that a city's character is "a legacy for seeing, interpreting, exploiting, and transforming its social, cultural and political opportunities as a physical community." How is it possible for a city like Boston to have character? Well, the institutional and cultural continuity along with the resistance and reconstruction of culture has allowed the character of Boston to be defined simply by the underlying idea of conflict. Through J Anthony Lukas' Common Ground and Richard Broadman's Mission Hill and the Miracle of Boston, we can see that the catalyst for this sense of conflict has been social dissentions between classes and races. These dissentions are clearly detailed through both the Urban Renewal plans of Mission Hill in the 1960s and 1970s and the school busing case of 1974.When looking at the character of Boston one must understand the amount of controversy our city has encountered as well as the way they have identified and resolved these crisis's. Through this deduction along with my own personal experience of living in Boston a step towards finding a distinct character of Boston may be possible.
Furthermore, he attempts to dispel the negative aspects of gentrification by pointing out how some of them are nonexistent. To accomplish this, Turman exemplifies how gentrification could positively impact neighborhoods like Third Ward (a ‘dangerous’ neighborhood in Houston, Texas). Throughout the article, Turman provides copious examples of how gentrification can positively change urban communities, expressing that “gentrification can produce desirable effects upon a community such as a reduced crime rate, investment in the infrastructure of an area and increased economic activity in neighborhoods which gentrify”. Furthermore, he opportunistically uses the Third Ward as an example, which he describes as “the 15th most dangerous neighborhood in the country” and “synonymous with crime”, as an example of an area that could “need the change that gentrification provides”.
Now, a normal sized town contains fast-food joints, supermarkets, malls, and superstores, but a small town lacks that appeal. The small-town could be the most beautiful landscape known to man, but lack the necessary luxuries in life that a typical American would benefit from. Carr and Kefalas make this statement that emphasizes the town’s lack of appeal, “Indeed the most conspicuous aspects of the towns landscape may be the very things that are missing; malls, subdivisions, traffic and young people” (26). The authors clearly state that they realize that towns, such as the Heartland, are hurting because of the towns’ lack of modernization. For all intents and purposes, the town’s lack of being visually pleasing is driving away probable citizens, not only the native youth, and possible future employee’s away from a possible internship with the town. The citizens with a practice or business hurt from the towns inability to grow up and change along with the rest of the world, yet the town doesn’t realize what bringing in other businesses could potentially do for their small town. Creating more businesses such as malls, superstores and supermarkets would not only drive business up the roof, but it’ll also bring in revenue and draw the
... motivation for wealthy individuals to return to the inner-city core but it also provides impetus for commercial and retail mixed-use to follow, increasing local revenue for cities (Duany, 2001). Proponents of gentrification profess that this increase in municipal revenue from sales and property taxes allows for the funding of city improvements, in the form of job opportunities, improved schools and parks, retail markets and increased sense of security and safety ((Davidson (2009), Ellen & O’Reagan (2007), Formoso et. al (2010)). Due to the increase in housing and private rental prices and the general decrease of the affordable housing stock in gentrifying areas, financially-precarious communities such as the elderly, female-headed households, and blue-collar workers can no longer afford to live in newly developed spaces ((Schill & Nathan (1983), Atkinson, (2000)).
Historically, Chicago has been and always will be a city of change both industrially and agriculturally to the metropolis we know and revere today with skyscrapers and culture abound. In order for the city to become the industrial hub, changes were made to the natural landscapes to accommodate business and residency. Steel became the staple good, and green spaces were demolished during the expansion of industry in the Calumet region by the masses in the creation of steel for railroad tracks and structural steel for commercial buildings. For geographical ambiance, The Calumet region of Chicago is consisted of the following neighborhoods: Burnside, Calumet Heights, East Side, Hegewisch, and Pullman, South Chicago, and South Deering. In this essay, I focus primarily on Pullman. It was unknown, or unsought of rather, how these implications would lead to issues of both economic and environmental injustice.
The rezoning of 125th street has been a topic of controversy and has yet to be approved. The Department of City Planning believes rezoning of 125th street will bring positive economic changes. I personally believe that these changes would negatively affect the residents and business owners of Harlem. According to the New York City’s Planning Commission, the rezoning will bring new business and housing. Residents and business owners disagree because they believe this plays a bigger role in promoting further “gentrification.” I believe that Harlem should be able to keep its cultural heritage while still promoting and modifying economic growth.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention defines gentrification as “the transformation of neighborhoods from low value to high value…gentrification is a housing, economic, and health issue that affects a community’s history and culture and reduces social capital often by shifting a neighborhood’s characteristics by adding new stores and resources in previously run-down neighborhoods.” Gentrification disproportionately affects special populations, including but not limited to the poor, women, children, the elderly and a vast majority of minority groups.
Gentrification is described as the renovation of certain neighborhoods in order to accommodate to young workers and the middle-class. For an area to be considered gentrified, a neighborhood must meet a certain median home value and hold a percentage of adults earning Bachelor’s degree. Philadelphia’s gentrification rate is among the top in the nation; different neighborhoods have pushed for gentrification and have seen immense changes as a result. However, deciding on whether or not gentrification is a beneficial process can become complicated. Various groups of people believe that cities should implementing policy on advancing gentrification, and others believe that this process shouldn’t executed. Both sides are impacted by the decision to progress gentrification; it is unclear of the true implications of completely renovating impoverished urban areas; gentrification surely doesn’t solve all of a community’s issues. I personally believe that gentrification is not necessarily a good or bad process; gentrification should occur as a natural progression of innovative economies and novel lifestyles collide within certain areas. Policy involving gentrification should not support the removal of people out of their neighborhood for the sake of advancement.
Lance Freeman tackles the issue of gentrification from the perspectives of residents in the gentrified neighborhood. He criticizes the literature for overlooking the experiences of the victims of gentrification. The author argues that people’s conceptions on the issue are somewhat misinformed in that most people consider it as completely deplorable, whereas in reality, it benefits the community by promoting businesses, different types of stores, and cleaner streets. These benefits are even acknowledged by many residents in the gentrified neighborhood. However, the author admits that gentrification indeed does harm. Although gentrification does not equate to displacement per se, it serves to benefit primarily homeowners and harm the poor. Additionally,
Gentrification is the keystone for the progression of the basic standards of living in urban environments. A prerequisite for the advancement of urban areas is an improvement of housing, dining, and general social services. One of the most revered and illustrious examples of gentrification in an urban setting is New York City. New York City’s gentrification projects are seen as a model for gentrification for not only America, but also the rest of the world. Gentrification in an urban setting is much more complex and has deeper ramifications than seen at face value. With changes in housing, modifications to the quality of life in the surrounding area must be considered as well. Constant lifestyle changes in a community can push out life-time
Redevelopment is described as the process of improving by renewing and restoring. When placed into the context of cities, redevelopment may be described as urban renewal. The redevelopment of cities is a crucial phenomenon that effects the fabric of communities socially, economically, politically and culturally. The need for an urban redevelopment usually arises when an area or district no longer functions nor cultivates its intended program. Unsuccessful existing and expired developments hinder its local community from progressing forward which causes a chain reaction of negativity (Tira M., Ivanička K., Špirková D., 2010). The declination of a district may occur because of various reasons. These reasons affect different districts in correspondence to the nature of the district. Issues such as segregation and alienation of site, lack of diversity, poor planning, decrease in value, poor maintenance, and security all contribute to the declination of a district (Christopher A.D.S., 2008). Therefore, the cause for redevelopment is not just to pacify these negative issues but rather it should be approached as a golden opportunity to look beyond that by creating added value.
Historic houses face a unique challenge that is not found in any other type of museum. In order for a house to attract more visitors, more time accurate furniture and art pieces need to be collected. More specifically, these pieces should have some relation to the house or to the people who lived there. Any time accurate pieces must also be held to the same conservation status as the structure and architecture of the house is. The success of historic house museums depends on the house as a whole with all of the objects displayed there. (Pinna) The reason historic houses need to be more careful than museums concerning the objects displayed are that the displays are meant to give visitors a glimpse of the past. A problem with this is it can only show one poin...
...n. In Malaysia, perform of building conservation is considered new. Laws used for historic building conservation are established throughout legislation whereby a national inventory of historic buildings includes lists and schedules of old buildings for defense. Under the Antiquities Act 1976 a historic building or monument aged at least 100 years old be able to be listed or gazette by the Government through the Museum Department to give defense and support for preservation and conservation (Kamal et al., 2008).Some of the historic buildings in Malaysia apply building materials which are easily existing locally such as timber, brick, plaster and stone. Example of historic buildings in Malaysia are government offices, institutional and commercials, mosque ,churches, palaces, clock towers, prisons, residential, schools, hotels, railway stations, forts and monuments.