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Urban renewal ×
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The Ohio River community of Newport bands together to slow runoff and add greenspace

Eye On Ohio

Bonnie Jean Feldkamp

19 December 2019

Newport, Kentucky, United States

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800-1500 Words

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To promote the implementation of greenspaces while also decreasing the likelihood of runoff after heavy rain storms, community groups in Newport, Kentucky worked together to implement strategic depaving. This practice...

Inspiring Tale of a Chicago Neighborhood That Would Not Die

Associated Press

Martha Irvine

25 November 2019

Chicago, Illinois, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Community members and local organizations on the South side of Chicago collaborate to reclaim their neighborhoods from crime, violence, and poverty by engaging in community conflict resolution, policing and networks o...

Public art offers morale boost to cities of all sizes

Richland Source

Noah Jones

HUB MEMBER

30 October 2019

Mansfield, Ohio, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Cities enhanced by public art improve the quality of life for their residents. Across the midwest—from Bucyrus, Ohio, to Chicago, Illinois—cities are investing in public art and murals as a way to revitalize their com...

Let's ponder public art and its potential impact in Mansfield

Richland Source

Larry Phillips

HUB MEMBER

29 October 2019

Mansfield, Ohio, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Public art adds value to communities that have experienced decline in recent decades. In towns like Mansfield and Marietta, Ohio, public art plays a positive role. Murals created by groups like Mansfield Murals Inc., ...

The Doomed 1970s Plan to Desegregate New York's Suburbs

CityLab

Lizabeth Cohen

21 October 2019

New York City, New York, United States

Text

Over 3000 Words

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A plan forged in New York City suburbs in the 1970s addressed urban renewal and income inequality by creating low-income housing dwellings in nine separate towns outside of the city. Though the "Fair Share" program fa...

This Conservative City Built a $132 Million Park Using One Weird Trick

CityLab

Zach Mortice

11 October 2019

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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After falling behind in urban planning and innovation in the 1990s and early 2000s, Oklahoma City created a limited-time sales tax called MAPS to pay for capital projects, like the new Scissortail Park. The tax consis...

Erie Hit ‘Rock Bottom.' The Former Factory Hub Thinks It Has a Way Out.

Wall Street Journal

Ruth Simon

Kris Maher

7 October 2019

Erie, Pennsylvania, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Erie, Pennsylvania, uses creative financial incentives for companies and businesses that invest capital gains in low-income areas of the city in order to pull itself out of economic hardship caused by the decrease in ...

Fighting Gun Violence in Chicago, With Trees, Rakes, and Cleanup Crews

The Trace

Brian Freskos

18 September 2019

Chicago, Illinois, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Chicago is trying something new when it comes to violence prevention: beautifying public spaces that have been known to be places of violence. The city has launched an official pilot program called Grounds for Peace, ...

Springfield could be a template for Bridgeport

Republican American

Ethan Fry

Amanda Cuda

26 August 2019

Springfield, Massachusetts, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Springfield, Massachusetts leaned into urban renewal and public-private partnerships to keep their local economy alive amid the manufacturing downfall. Now, Bridgeport - a town of similar size and economic fate - look...

How a 276-person town in Kansas is turning an empty school into a business incubator

Burlington Free Press

April McCullum

HUB MEMBER

21 August 2019

Hanston, Kansas, United States

Multi-Media

1500-3000 Words

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When the city of Hanston, Kansas had to shut down the local middle/high school, residents refused to let the school sit vacant; instead, the building now houses a town-owned business incubator called Elk Plaza. Uses o...

Chicago remade its 127-year-old rapid transit system. Are there lessons for Metro?

Washington Post

Lori Aratani

2 August 2019

Chicago, Illinois, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Officials who want to improve Washington D.C.'s unreliable metro system look to the Chicago Transportation Authority to find examples of success in rebuilding a subway system. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel prioritized up...

Three Big Lessons From One Small Town

The Atlantic

James Fallows

18 July 2019

Danville, Virginia, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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The town of Danville, Virginia survived the downfall of the mill industry by using creative financing and investing in solid economic infrastructure that will remain sustainable into the future. The town has invested ...

What the Land Bank has accomplished the last 10 years

WEWS

Camryn Justice

26 June 2019

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Broadcast TV News

Under 3 Minutes

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Through expansive demolition and rehabilitation services, the Cuyahoga County Land Bank is estimated to have made a $1.43 billion impact to Cleveland and surrounding communities. The land bank focuses on renewing blig...

City Revival - Did We Learn From the Urban Renewal Era?

The Connecticut Mirror

Tom Condon

HUB MEMBER

24 June 2019

New Haven, Connecticut, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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In the middle of the 20th century, the Housing Act of 1949 launched cities across the city into a downtown reconstruction frenzy, the often to no avail; in the modern renewal movement, cities try to get it right. Citi...

With Connecticut cities struggling with blighted properties, Newburgh, N.Y., may have a solution

Republican American

Michael Puffer

22 June 2019

Newburgh, New York, United States

Multi-Media

800-1500 Words

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A land bank in Newburgh, New York has revitalized dozens of blighted homes around the community, helping to turn city around. The land bank, which offers preferences to locals when selling renewed homes, now serves as...

Blight is eating American cities. Here's how Mobile, Alabama, stopped it

FastCompany

Hana Schank

10 June 2019

Mobile, Alabama, United States

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Over 3000 Words

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While the entire nation struggles to combat blight and rundown housing, the city of Mobile, Alabama put together a task force and managed to slow the spread of blight in the town and even change the state constitution...

How industrial assets became taxpayer liabilities

Republican American

Michael Puffer

3 June 2019

Waterbury, Connecticut, United States

Multi-Media

800-1500 Words

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After years of developmental stagnancy, the city of Waterbury, Connecticut puts into action a way for developers to renew buildings without having to take financial responsibility for previous owners' environmental wa...

Former Bridgeport factory transforms from blighted property to a model of revitalization

Republican American

Harrison Connery

3 June 2019

Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States

Multi-Media

800-1500 Words

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A development firm in Bridgeport, CT relies on public-private partnerships to fund renewal of blighted sites into upgraded buildings, including a brand new charter school. With a mix of government and low-income housi...

From bleak to bustling: how one French town solved its high street crisis

The Guardian

Angelique Chrisafis

20 May 2019

Mulhouse, France

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800-1500 Words

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Mulhouse, a small city in France, brushed off its negative reputation and used community networking, clever financing, and urban renewal as tools to become a bustling center once again. The town relied on many communi...

What Mansfield can learn from the brand Marion made, Fargo's frost-themed festival and Ohio's wee bit of Irish attitude

Richland Source

Tracy Geibel

HUB MEMBER

17 May 2019

Mansfield, Ohio, United States

Text

Over 3000 Words

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Mansfield, Ohio leaders look to cities across the country for inspiration from successes - and lessons from failures - to help them rebuild their downtown brand. From Austin, Texas, to Fargo, South Dakota, these succe...

Fort Wayne Makes Its Own Luck

The Atlantic

James Fallows

26 April 2019

Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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Fort Wayne, Indiana follows the national trend that transforms old abandoned buildings into new economic powerhouses by converting what was once the massive GE campus into a mixed space of residential, business and re...

How Abandoned Big-Box Stores Can Bring Communities Together

Next City

Valerie Vande Panne

HUB MEMBER

11 March 2019

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

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Over 3000 Words

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When big box stores shutter, communities can suffer: vacant buildings deter investment and sites can encourage vandalism and other crimes. Because demolishing the stores can prove prohibitively expensive, three cities...

Local nonprofit fosters West End growth

The Watch

Amy Peters

28 February 2019

Nucla, Colorado, United States

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1500-3000 Words

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With the help of the nonprofit West End Economic Development Corporation (WEEDC), communities in Southwest Colorado use creative financing and collective action to rebuild their economies after the downfall of the coa...

Development is booming in Milwaukee Junction, but you might not have noticed it

Model D

Patrick Dunn

19 February 2019

Detroit, Michigan, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Milwaukee Junction, a neighborhood in Detroit, focuses on urban renewal and business promotion as it seeks to become the next "up-and-coming" area in the city. Developers seek out abandoned lots and old auto manufactu...

Revised San Diego Law Allows for More Parklets, Pop-Ups

Next City

Rachel Kaufman

HUB MEMBER

12 February 2019

San Diego, California, United States

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Under 800 Words

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San Diego residents may be seeing more placemaking projects, like murals or pedestrian plazas, because of a more streamlined permitting process. The city, notorious for making such projects difficult and expense to in...

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Photos Credits

Photos are licensed under Attribution Non Commercial 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license / Desaturated from original, and are credited to the following photographers:

Fondriest Environmental, David De Wit / Community Eye Health, Linda Steil / Herald Post, John Amis / UGA College of Ag & Environmental Sciences – OCCS, Andy B, Peter Garnhum, Thomas Hawk, 7ty9, Isriya Paireepairit, David Berger, UnLtd The Foundation For Social Entrepreneurs, Michael Dunne, Burak Kebapci, and Forrest Berkshire / U.S. Army Cadet Command public affairs

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Ra'ed Qutena, 段 文慶, Fabio Campo, City Clock Magazine, Justin Norman, scarlatti2004, Gary Simmons, Kathryn McCallum, and Nearsoft Inc

Photos are licensed under CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication Creative Commons license / Desaturated from original, and are credited to the following photographers:

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Photos are licensed under Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) and are credited to the US Army Corps of Engineers.

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Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian via Getty Images

Photo Credit: Sonia Narang