Brownfield redevelopment is a juggling act in many respects, with many balls tossed in the air as it pertains to dealing with and coalescing the ideas and opinions of many diverse stakeholders. Even if all redevelopment constituents are on the same page, the end result of an ambitious, visionary and even results-driven redevelopment can even come with a collateral cost, as even the most seasoned practitioners well know.
In our industry, using the word “gentrification” is a hot potato. The implication is that you can make vast improvements to an urban zone and still face backlash due to those that suffer from that rebirth rather than benefit from it. Residents and local mom and pop shops might find they no longer can afford to reside in the redeveloped area—as the envelope has been pushed on “quality” and “amenities” and “property values.”
Some face the burden of being displaced. Even if given fair market value for their homes the dilemma and question is, where do they relocate? In a perfect scenario, an urban redevelopment zone will not only be greatly enhanced, but the residential and commercial mainstays are able to do just that—stay.
In Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, all eyes are fixed on how an ambitious redevelopment will materialize when completed, projected by 2013. It's a project that's being executed in Hyde Park's East 53rd St. corridor that is marked by residential and commercial revitalization. Currently, the site has been cleared for a hotel and a 12-story office tower on land owned by the University of Chicago. The university has a stated goal to improve its amenities and draw newcomers to the area between East 55th and 49th streets, according to a recent report in the Chicago Tribune.
Chicago has had past success in other neighborhood redevelopments that produced a seamless win-win for all going forward. The occurrences in Wicker Park, Bucktown, Lakeview and Lincoln Park are just a few examples. The report stated that Hyde Park has eternally been burdened by its proximity to poor neighborhoods. Over time, poor neighborhoods have been pushed further out as the University of Chicago bought up properties, the newspaper report stated.
No doubt, you can't fault the university's stated goal to make Hyde Park an attractive community and serve as a good neighbor. The wheels started turning on this in 2001 when an 84-acre TIF district was established by the city. It wanted to use the TIF incentives to attract retailers, as it was shown that the Hyde Park area lagged behind commercial development success trends in other parts of the city.
Fast forward a decade: This enclave has grown by leaps and bounds. The Chicago Tribune report indicated residents are going to keeping a close handle on the type of retailers that come in to Hyde Park. The trend over the past few years during this ongoing renovation project has been that small independent businesses either fled elsewhere or closed shop. That's because with the cosmetic improvement came higher rents.
The word “gentrification” always carried such positive overtones. Making vast upgrades, improvements...all good, right? But it all depends on the context. In the Hyde Park case, the ambitious and seemingly triumphant plan is being called “shortsighted” on the part of urban planners.
It is not a bad idea whatsoever to transform Hyde Park into a world-class neighborhood, but certainly not at the expense of commercial and residential upheaval.
