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The past four years, I lived in the Denver, Colorado area -- a city that is oft cited for its efforts to revitalize downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods, where suburbs sprawl but tough design standards promote very high quality development that reinforces community identity, where affluent, educated residents are returning to inner city neighborhoods that, only a few years before, were thought of as questionable. Now, I’m in Orlando, Florida – another boomtown that is experiencing an influx of new residents, gentrification of inner city neighborhoods, and heightened recognition among its residents of the role the built environment plays in day-to-day life.
Recently, I was thinking about the places that are slowly withering, despite the economic boom of recent years -- Buffalo, Rochester, Niagara Falls, Hartford, Youngstown. Buffalo, for instance, is ethnically and socioeconomically insular, socially isolated, no longer has economic relevance, is bleeding its youngest and brightest, and from a planning and governance standpoint, has managed to go against the grain and do _everything_ wrong.
Tough architectural design, site planning and signage regulations, construction of New Urbanist communities, lofts and warehouse districts, metro consolidation, managed racial integration of transitional areas – commonplace throughout the country, but not even on the agenda in Buffalo. While homebuyers throughout the country flock to New Urbanist communities such as Kentlands, Celebration, and Lowry, developers in suburban Buffalo continue to build a web of sprawling, loop n’ lollypop streets far on the urban fringe, cheered on by their host communities.
Other cities are expanding their rail systems, and promoting high-density development near their stations; in Buffalo, McDonald’s opens up outlets with drive-through windows next to stations of a rail system that hasn’t expand, isn’t going to expand. Suburban communities throughout the country are begging for rail; in Buffalo, residents are scared that minorities will go out to their precious subdivisions, and cart stolen television sets back to the East Side on Metro Rail.
Low housing costs and low demand result in no market pressure to revitalize old housing stock and inner city neighborhoods. “For Sale” signs pop up minutes after the first minority appears on a block in some neighborhoods. Young, well educated men and women find it harder to identify with the blue collar, old-school ethnic culture that permeates Buffalo, a culture that has not given way despite the economic and realities of today. Even with world-class high culture and more four-year colleges than many cities three or four times the size, Bills fanaticism still proves to be a more powerful force than cultural and educational enrichment. Buffalo's politics and mindset more closely resembles that of Chicago in 1960 – a working class neighborhood in Chicago, at that -- in 1960 than Portland, or even Cleveland, in 2000. Among American cities, Buffalo seems to be a living anachronism.
A century ago, if a city lost its reason for existing -- the gold was extracted, the price of silver dropped -- no government subsidies propped up the place. Would we all be better off if the Buffalos and Hartfords and Youngstowns were just abandoned? Their architectural treasures can be preserved, made a part of a national park; their art and library collections can be relocated to more prosperous cities; their people and businesses can move away like they have been for the past 50 years. Should Buffalo be allowed to die with dignity?
Buffalo, justify your existence.
Recently, I was thinking about the places that are slowly withering, despite the economic boom of recent years -- Buffalo, Rochester, Niagara Falls, Hartford, Youngstown. Buffalo, for instance, is ethnically and socioeconomically insular, socially isolated, no longer has economic relevance, is bleeding its youngest and brightest, and from a planning and governance standpoint, has managed to go against the grain and do _everything_ wrong.
Tough architectural design, site planning and signage regulations, construction of New Urbanist communities, lofts and warehouse districts, metro consolidation, managed racial integration of transitional areas – commonplace throughout the country, but not even on the agenda in Buffalo. While homebuyers throughout the country flock to New Urbanist communities such as Kentlands, Celebration, and Lowry, developers in suburban Buffalo continue to build a web of sprawling, loop n’ lollypop streets far on the urban fringe, cheered on by their host communities.
Other cities are expanding their rail systems, and promoting high-density development near their stations; in Buffalo, McDonald’s opens up outlets with drive-through windows next to stations of a rail system that hasn’t expand, isn’t going to expand. Suburban communities throughout the country are begging for rail; in Buffalo, residents are scared that minorities will go out to their precious subdivisions, and cart stolen television sets back to the East Side on Metro Rail.
Low housing costs and low demand result in no market pressure to revitalize old housing stock and inner city neighborhoods. “For Sale” signs pop up minutes after the first minority appears on a block in some neighborhoods. Young, well educated men and women find it harder to identify with the blue collar, old-school ethnic culture that permeates Buffalo, a culture that has not given way despite the economic and realities of today. Even with world-class high culture and more four-year colleges than many cities three or four times the size, Bills fanaticism still proves to be a more powerful force than cultural and educational enrichment. Buffalo's politics and mindset more closely resembles that of Chicago in 1960 – a working class neighborhood in Chicago, at that -- in 1960 than Portland, or even Cleveland, in 2000. Among American cities, Buffalo seems to be a living anachronism.
A century ago, if a city lost its reason for existing -- the gold was extracted, the price of silver dropped -- no government subsidies propped up the place. Would we all be better off if the Buffalos and Hartfords and Youngstowns were just abandoned? Their architectural treasures can be preserved, made a part of a national park; their art and library collections can be relocated to more prosperous cities; their people and businesses can move away like they have been for the past 50 years. Should Buffalo be allowed to die with dignity?
Buffalo, justify your existence.