East of Liberty : reclaiming Main Street

Although we were taught about the success of the Civil Rights movement in elementary school, it is undeniable that socioeconomic differences create community borders throughout the world. Specifically discussed here is East Liberty part of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's "East End." Over a forty-five year period East Liberty has been disassociated from her neighbors and become an archipelago like many of Pittsburgh's neighborhoods. Since the sixties, when the first interventions were commissioned by David L. Lawrence's Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), development reinforced already present socioeconomic barriers and people began to fear East Liberty, on the other side of the tracks from Shadyside. Today, the URA no longer directly influences design, but oversees the federal funding that non profit Community Development Corporations (CDCs) receive for the commercial and residential development projects. Ironically, CDCs are comprised of real-estate brokers, not politicians, architects, nor planners. Economically, East Liberty is improving if the big box stores make profits, then the land will generate revenue from taxes and its value will rise. If more developers and business owners take interest, the empty storefronts will fill. This process, however, should include a plan for the retention of the poorer residents who wish to remain in their homes. The cost of economic success is the continual displacement of those who do not have any stake in where they live due to their dependence on the government. Displacement severs familial and community roots inhibiting the success of both.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2006

Author dc:creator

• Westervelt, Nathalie M. (Nathalie Marie)

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• John P. De Monchaux.

• Architecture.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/34419

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/34419