Neighborhood revitalization requires more than affordable housing,
more than the right retail mix...

by Frank Mills

Over
the past few weeks I have been researching urban neighborhoods around
the country that have turned around. Contrary to the idea prevalent in
the thinking of many planners, new housing (affordable, or otherwise),
the “proper� retail mix, new streetscapes, or a strong Community
Development Corporation, while important, were not the primary factors
in a neighborhood’s revitalization.

In each instance studied there were two common factors that brought about revitalization:

• True
  or not, a refrain often heard in those neighborhoods that seemed unable
  to bring revitalization about, was that the CDC had an agenda contrary
  to the neighborhood’s shared vision.

• A city government that does not give up on its worst neighborhoods.
  Not only does city government not give up on the neighborhood,
  government believes that the residents of the neighborhood, no matter
  how impoverished they or the neighborhood may be, best know what is
  needed for neighborhood revitalization, and thus, government listens
  and follows.

Read the entire posting at Frank Mills Urban Paradoxes Blog