Urban Renewal

Urban Renewal Definition in Geography

Urban renewal in geography is the process of redeveloping areas with low property values in order to create new infrastructure and increase tax revenue. Urban renewal takes place in areas urban planners and local governments considered "slums" which may have lower-quality infrastructure or are experiencing urban decay. Development can take the form of new businesses, residences, or amenities.

Urban renewal programs are highly controversial. Targeted areas for urban renewal programs have displaced low-income and minority populations. New construction that should have provided affordable homes were instead luxury commercial buildings and highways. Additionally, these areas may have been redlined in previous years, preventing people from investing and building within their own neighborhoods.

The method, processes, and targeted areas vary from country to country. Some governments and developers target areas that are uninhabited and simply add new buildings and infrastructure on site. In most cases in the US, urban renewal programs may have improved areas within cities but did not improve the city as a whole (which was the intended goal).

Nowadays, urban renewal projects are done in previously abandoned or underdeveloped areas in cities. Urban renewal projects were brought on by several causes, including the neglect and underfunding of cities in the 20th century.

Causes of Urban Renewal

The causes of urban renewal projects are declining tax revenue, visually unappealing conditions, or poor urban living conditions. The main goals of urban renewal are economic, social, and environmental revival.

Causes in the US

The decline of inner cities began in the 1950s and 1960s in conjunction with suburban sprawl and the expansion of automobiles. This was made possible by the GI Bill in 1944 which provided WWII veterans home loans, healthcare, and other benefits. The Housing Act of 1949 spurred single-family housing development outside cities largely only accessible to white families.

Alongside new housing development outside cities, redlining practices carried out by banks, insurance companies, and even local governments prevented certain neighborhoods from accessing loans and insurance.² This limited community development to only certain parts of the city deemed "less risky," favoring all-white communities over low-income and minority communities.

Urban decline in these areas was apparent. With less investment, less tax revenue, and declining populations in these areas, the federal government stepped in to solve these issues.

Title I of the Housing Act 1949, titled "Slum Clearance and Community Development and Redevelopment" provided federal financing for urban renewal projects in cities. The expectation was that the federal government would assist in building housing for low- and middle-income residents. However, most of the projects that took place built up universities, schools, hospitals, shopping areas, luxury housing, and highways.

Causes Outside the US

There are similar causes for urban renewal in other parts of the world. Population decline inside cities coincided with population increases in surrounding suburban areas.³ With increasing incomes, residents left inner cities, taking tax revenue and businesses with them.

In the case of some cities, lower-income housing developments are not targeted, but instead, previously unused or abandoned land is built on. There are many areas like this in cities due to deindustrialization, which witnessed a loss of manufacturing jobs and facilities within cities. The dereliction of these sites left scars of this process throughout cities.

Effects of Urban Renewal

Although new government buildings and cultural facilities were built, much of the cost of urban renewal was social and environmental.

Negative Effects

The effects of urban renewal plans in the US included the destruction of low-income and minority neighborhoods, displacement of vulnerable residents, reduction of low-cost housing in inner-city areas, and increased economic inequality. Over a million US residents were displaced between 1949 and 1973.

Although the expectation was for new, affordable housing, most of the projects focused on commercial development.⁵ In many cases, demolished areas in the form of vacant lots were left undeveloped for years due to poor planning practices, conflicting interests, and local corruption.³The social, environmental, and economic damage of this kind of displacement has been widely discussed for cases in the US and UK for decades.

Positive Effects

Despite the negatives, some urban renewal projects did succeed. The projects that instead used abandoned and unused areas within cities to build, fared better than projects that didn't displace local residents.

Some renewal projects re-used abandoned grounds for new apartments, government buildings, and parks, or even to repair already existing structures. It should be noted that even projects that benefited minorities were heavily criticized. Construction projects did not promote racial, ethnic, or income mixing in neighborhoods and instead perpetuated existing patterns of "residential apartheid" or segregation.⁵

Types of Urban Renewal

Different types of urban renewal projects have taken place depending on the site, method, and implementation.

Vacant Lot

Where vacant lots are available, infill development is possible. Infill means to repurpose the land as an alternative to empty space and urban blight. Additionally, infill developments are part of urban sustainability in that they promote greater densification and diversity in land use. Examples of vacant lots include undeveloped land and parking lots, which don't require demolition and are easy to build on.

Fig. 3 - Infill development in London, UK. Construction occurs between existing buildings

Unoccupied Buildings

Unoccupied buildings such as abandoned factories, ports, stores, or other utility parks are also targets for redevelopment. Some are brownfields, developed areas that have been abandoned and are contaminated from industry pollution or neglect, requiring clean-up and remediation. Before any buildings are torn down, the structural soundness and historical importance are considered.

Occupied Buildings

Occupied buildings have also been the target for urban renewal projects. While some buildings appear uninhabitable, they may still be occupied because their residents can't afford to live elsewhere. Still-sound buildings located in areas considered dangerous or impoverished were targets for urban renewal. This is because it was believed that replacing existing infrastructure would end crime and poverty.

While US city governments demolished many neighborhoods for urban renewal, they now focus on redeveloping unused land instead. There are still cases of targeting occupied buildings and sites in other parts of the world.⁸

Urban Renewal Examples

There are many notable urban renewal examples around the world. We'll explore projects involving infill development and unoccupied buildings.

Charles Center in Baltimore

The Charles Center in Baltimore is one of the rare success stories where the incorporation of existing buildings was prioritized and minimal demolition took place. The goal was to keep the original character of the buildings and minimize negative impacts. Charles Center created a new, revitalized city center while adding 5,000 jobs and quadrupling real estate revenue.⁵

Baltimore also had high degrees of institutional segregation. Loans and financing were provided primarily for affluent and white residents, despite the majority of Black residents in the city. To this day, neighborhoods with fewer Black residents have higher property values and income levels.⁹

Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Puerto Madero was built in 1889. After construction, the port was deemed useless due to poor engineering, and this sent the port and surrounding area into decline. While different projects were implemented to create interest in the area again, it wasn't until the 1990s that major regeneration projects were planned.⁸

Because the area was so highly visible (in the heart of the business district), the city wanted to create a new district people could visit, work, shop, and live. Private investment and construction took over most of the work with the implementation of tasteful mixed land use along the waterfront.

Fig. 4 - Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires, Argentina