Thesis
A regenerative study on the impact of urban public green space development on adjacent neighborhoods and communities and its potential to contribute to equitable neighborhood transformation
Master of Science (M.S.), Drexel University
Jun 2023
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00001727
Abstract
The development of public green space in dense urban environments has become a tool for "neighborhood improvement" through leveraging parks as economic growth machines, with the intention to trigger economic impact in the surrounding areas. While economic growth and investment are value creating opportunities for cities and their residents, it is important to acknowledge that exploitive practices and inequitable distribution of economic and social benefits, lead to exacerbating existing wealth disparities in urban areas, which might result in neighborhood change, gentrification, and displacement of marginalized community members. The purpose of this case study research is to explore the impact of two urban greenway projects on the socio-economic and cultural systems of the neighborhoods and communities they are embedded in, in order to understand their role in neighborhood change. Through this inquiry, I examine the High Line in New York City and the Rail Park in Philadelphia, with the goal to learn from the challenges and successes of the projects and understand if urban public green space has the potential to contribute to system regeneration and equitable neighborhood transformation. The results of this research are analyzed using regenerative frameworks; regenerative practices emerged from indigenous worldviews, that understand systems as a whole and prioritize system health when solving complex issues. While acknowledging the value of economic growth resulting from the development of urban public green space, this research proposes that developers must practice meaningful community engagement and neighborhood residents must receive ownership in their communities' appreciation, in order for the development to contribute to system regeneration and equitable neighborhood transformation, and to maintain the cultural and demographic diversity of a place. Instead of viewing equitable development strategies as a service to the community or as a means to retrospectively mitigate the adverse effects of development, centering equity through building community capacity and establishing community ownership, is key. The regenerative approach highlights that granting the community a share of the social and economic benefits that urban public green space development generates, can enable the community to rise with the economics of the neighborhood, and might therefore solve issues of displacement. When capable of creative problem solving, transparency, and a shift in mindset, developers can therefore become participants in a healthier local living economy, instead of an extracting system, which results in mutual benefits that allows all parties to be better off.
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Details
- Title
- A regenerative study on the impact of urban public green space development on adjacent neighborhoods and communities and its potential to contribute to equitable neighborhood transformation
- Creators
- Theresa Jordan
- Contributors
- Max Zahniser (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Master of Science (M.S.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Number of pages
- viii, 74 pages
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Urban Strategy; Architecture, Design, and Urbanism; Drexel University; Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design
- Other Identifier
- 991021120114404721