Just revitalization in shrinking and shrunken cities? Observations on gentrification from New Orleans and Cincinnati

ABSTRACT

In the last decade, shrinking cities have begun to gentrify, leading to optimistic narratives about their recovery. Redevelopment policies, however, can exacerbate social and spatial inequities if explicit efforts do not promote social justice. Drawing on evidence from Cincinnati and New Orleans, we explore 3 components of just revitalization: avoiding displacement, connecting longtime residents to new opportunities, and reducing decline in neighborhoods that are not revitalizing. The article then examines 3 reasons these objectives have been difficult to achieve: the timing of anti-displacement policies, the mechanisms used to connect long-term residents to economic opportunities, and how cities address conditions in neighborhoods that are not growing. The analysis shows that the cities are adopting mechanisms to spread the benefits of revitalization, but without explicit policies targeting low- and moderate-income residents, neighborhoods in shrinking cities can become unaffordable and gentrification will increase inequity.

Notes

1. Two fair redevelopment plans developed in Pittsburgh influenced this section. Local stakeholders partnered with the national think tank and action center Policy Link to develop Equitable Development: The Path to an All-In Pittsburgh (Treuhaft, 2016) and The Pittsburgh Fair Development Action Group also produced a report Black Homes Matter (2016, p. 3) in which it outlined principles for fair development.

2. They mayor and city council abolished the city’s Economic Development Department in 2001.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Renia Ehrenfeucht

Renia Ehrenfeucht is a Professor and the Chair of the Community & Regional Planning at the University of New Mexico. She studies shrinking and shrunken cities, particularly how people live in areas that have lost population, how the areas change and institutions adapt. She also researches public spaces and the politics of everyday life, asking how ordinary spaces and local institutions shape people’s opportunities in diverse, urban environments.

Marla Nelson

Marla Nelson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Planning and Urban Studies at the University of New Orleans and Coordinator of the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program.  Her research on inclusive, equitable development seeks to inform planning and policy to increase opportunity within cities and regions.