What is a city? Is it a concentration of people with similar cultural, religious, and sociological ideas, or is it simply a concentration of people with a similar economic purpose? Since early civilization the idea of the city has been of great purpose for the inhabitants of an area. From the early Greek-city polis of Sparta and Athens to the power of Rome, cities have undergone many changes throughout the course of time. In the new world economy and society, the idea of the city is taking on new forms. As a former resident of Brussels, I personally have seen a change from the time of my parents to the present day. For example, Brussels has seen a massive influx of immigration from North Africa and Eastern Europe, whereas during my parents' early years immigration was largely stagnant. Another example would be the Dutch cities Rotterdam and Amsterdam. These two cities have become heavily populated with Muslim immigrants to a point that the North African Muslims will one day be the majority in these cities. This "redevelopment of the city" because of immigration and other factors is central to the growth of the common city.
In the United States, numerous cities have undergone major changes over the past several years. Some cities, such as Los Angeles, Miami, and New York have seen once dormant residential and commercial centers again became vibrant centers for economic activity. For example in Los Angeles, motivated immigrants viewed, what the mainstream intelligentia would have considered an undesirable area for residential or economic purposes, an area they could prosper. The "toytown" district east of downtown Los Angeles was once such a stagnant and undesirable area. However, due to the diligent and creative w...
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...the city growing and the redevelopment of certain cities have given me new ideas on the topic. The need for creative people in the workplace, socially, and politically have enabled some cities to grow and achieve new heights of prosperity. The cities are also being helped by domestic and foreign immigration, as these individuals are very much motivated to ensure themselves a better life in this new land. Immigrants have established a sense of community in their neighborhoods by bringing new ideas and cultural aspects to the cities. By achieving this sense of community, cities have been able to see exponential growth and a flourishing of culture. For the cities that are willing to change and are tolerant of new ideas, growth and prosperity are just around the corner. Perhaps one day Nacogdoches can become a flourishing city of growth and prosperity.
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
Quarterly . Vol. 56, No. 3, Los Angeles and the Future of Urban Cultures (Sep., 2004) , pp. 583-605. Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press. Stable URL:http://www.jstor.org/stable/40068235
However, there is usually not enough land or housing for the city's growing population. There is also not enough jobs in the city to keep everyone employed. Poverty increases and jobs give lower and lower pay. The poor live in slums
... 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)).
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.
This investigation is based on the assumption that gentrification with all its troubles can’t be prevented and is an inherent part of every city. What are the negative impacts of gentrification? What are the underlying mechanisms that feed these impacts? What drives these mechanisms? What would be an alternative scenario?
Richard C. Nelson, the author, is a professor in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning and the Planning Degree program at the University of Arizona. He has made substantial contributions in real estate analysis and urban growth trends. Nelson also created the term ‘megapolitan’ which he predicts the United States will have over twenty by 2040. These megapolitans are the result of the reverse sprawl and creating major economic centers, which will make America globally competitive. Nelson’s background ties in to many of his ideas in the book, with the main points focusing on demographic changes, housing trends, more space for future jobs and the benefits of reshaping metropolitan America. Changing demographics support the notion that more people are choosing an urban lifestyle over sprawl, which means a higher preference of
If you live in or near Detroit you know the recession, which began roughly around December of 2007 still seems to exist. Detroit with its auto manufacturing background was hit very hard during the economic downturn of our country. What you may not know however is how city planners intend to breathe new life into what many consider a dying city. To the people who see us as a dying city, you have no vision. Urban renewal will bring renewed glory by preserving buildings that have cultural heritage, providing small business opportunities and rebuilding neighborhood communities.
Of the many problems affecting urban communities, both locally and abroad, there is one issue in particular, that has been victimizing the impoverished within urban communities for nearly a century; that would be the problem of gentrification. Gentrification is a word used to describe the process by which urban communities are coerced into adopting improvements respective to housing, businesses, and general presentation. Usually hidden behind less abrasive, or less stigmatized terms such as; “urban renewal” or “community revitalization” what the process of gentrification attempts to do, is remove all undesirable elements from a particular community or neighborhood, in favor of commercial and residential enhancements designed to improve both the function and aesthetic appeal of that particular community. The purpose of this paper is to make the reader aware about the significance of process of gentrification and its underlying impact over the community and the community participation.
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
After World War II, the United States of America became a much wealthier nation. As America gained wealth and the populations in urban cities and transportation technology increased, many Americans spread out, away from the urban cities, to fulfill the common dream of having a piece of land to call their own. The landscape constructed became known as the suburbs, exclusive residential areas within commuting distance of a city. The popularity and success of the suburban landscape caused suburbs to sprawl across the United States, from the east coast to the west coast and along the borders between Canada and Mexico. By the 1990s, many suburbs surrounding major urban cities developed into being more than merely exclusive residential areas. The new kind of area developed out of suburbia, the post-suburban environment, has the characteristics of the suburbs and the characteristics of the central city, or what postmodern political geographer and urban planner, Edward Soja calls, ‘the city turned inside out' (Foster 1). The post-suburban environment, is “a fundamentally decentralized spatial arrangement in which a variety of commercial, recreational, shopping, arts, residential, and religious activities are conducted in different places and are linked primarily by private automobile transportation” (Kling 1). The multifaceted aspects of the post-suburban environment make it an attractive and dynamic space with opportunities of employment. Topanga Canyon, near Los Angeles, California, is such an example of a suburb space that's developed into a dynamic post-suburban space. Since the post-suburban space of Topanga Canyon is dynamic and filled with employment opportunities, it's attractive to Mexican immigrants who wish to have a better l...
Despite the early success of the “slow-growth antiregime,” that teamed government officials, investors and neighborhood grass roots organizations in directing the development of San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, these efforts were unsuccessful in modifying the gentrification of this geographically desirable, but poverty stricken section of the city (Robinson 484, 505). The Tenderloin, which had been plagued by drug epidemics, crime, and homelessness, has experienced a gentrification, which may be defined as “the transformation of a poor neighborhood by changes in population characteristics and/or changes in land uses” (Palen
People will be more willing and capable of living in denser, more efficient environments only when the underlying culture that sustains sprawl is altered. The sense of the American community needs to be re-established if there is to be any real progress in the battle against sprawl. The REAL problem here then, is that changing the culture of a state, of a nation, is a very long and difficult undertaking…
Many factors and geographical processes, the foreshore of Sydney Harbour has constantly faced changes in land use which has effected the environment, social communities and the economy in both positive and negative ways. Urban decay, urban renewal, urban consolidation and gentrification are the geographical process that are involved in the changing gland use around the Sydney Harbour foreshore. These geographical processes are what changes the land use from being used as industrial, residential and commercial which then impacts the economy, social communities/ public, the environment and the stakeholders.
Finally, this paper will explore the “end product” that exists today through the works of the various authors outlined in this course and explain how Los Angeles has survived many decades of evolution, breaking new grounds and serving as the catalyst for an urban metropolis.