Writings about pairs of adjacent neighborhoods?

April 27, 2009 7:49 PM

Urban Planning/Theory Filter: I am looking for writings, preferably available online, about the relationships of adjacent neighborhoods over time.

I'm interested in the symbiotic (or antagonistic, or whatever) relationships of adjoining neighborhoods, especially when change is added to the mix.

I've heard about "triage" in a planning/policy context, where cities decide to leave certain under-served communities for dead and save others that are closer geographically to more affluent or gentrified parts of town -- those "up and coming" "frontier" neighborhoods that the creative class has probably staked some claim in already.

Also interested in case studies about how certain areas deal successfully with integrating the needs and resources of nearby communities into their Specific Plans.

So, stuff like that, or articles about more organic relationships between neighborhoods... not really looking for personal anecdotes as much as help finding academic literature or good journalism. Thanks!

posted by mirepoix to society & culture (5 comments total)

And if something isn't online, point me to the abstract anyway -- there are libraries in this town!
posted by mirepoix at 7:54 PM on April 27

I would check the archives of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for the keywords "Riverwest" and "Brewer's Hill" - two gentrifying neighborhoods that are next to areas of extreme poverty. During the housing boom, there was much clashing in Brewer's Hill as people lost their homes to developers (as well as along/around 1st Street). I remember a lengthy series of articles about this, probably around 2005. Check "Harambee" and "Metcalfe Park" as well.

I'd also ask over at Cyburbia.
posted by desjardins at 4:12 PM on April 28

Here's a short article about Brewer's Hill (oh, bizarre, I just realized that I was at that meeting).
posted by desjardins at 4:15 PM on April 28

Not sure if this is at all what you're looking for, but the book American Pharaoh talks a lot about Chicago's South side neighborhoods, and their changing demographics in early to mid century. It's a pretty good case study of how not to deal successfully with neighboring communities and race relations.
posted by gueneverey at 6:21 PM on April 28

Might be a bit larger and more antagonistic than what you were looking for, but...

'Conflict in Cities and the Contested State' is a five year research project starting in 2007 that focuses on divided cities as key sites in territorial conflicts over state and national identities, cultures and borders.

Also this, on the gentrification of East London.
posted by doobiedoo at 4:49 PM on April 30