Architects, environmentalists, industrialists, politicians are more likely than theologians to proffer urban dreams. Commerce is the way to do that, they claim. Land development and tax-free zones raise property values. Economic shifts and new businesses destroy established but poor neighborhoods. Regentrification has a much different meaning for those of us who have been in the cities all along.
Land use is driven by dollars while environmental concerns multiply.
Urban planners seek to recreate the cities. The problem with most urban planning is that it is usually driven by government agencies, run by and for the city. Lyn Lewis, colleague and noted sociologist, is African American and a Detroit resident. She states that neither the macro management approach or the New Urbanism offer real choices. Her complaint is heard within city communities where we know that red lining still happens by zip code.