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I noticed this series on MLive also; I'm glad someone posted it.
Part of me wants to just forget that this all happened and declare an end to the rehashing of the 'urban renewal story.' Yet, at the same time, I know that it is important for us to keep looking back on the past in order to not repeat the same mistakes. I like how the articles keep going back to a 'what if' scenario, but I think there is absolutely no way to imagine Grand Rapids today with all of its old architecture intact. It is possible that the argument can be justified that Grand Rapids is better off now. The southern portion of downtown (the portion that mostly remained) is now quite vibrant and rejuvenated; there are only a few buildings still awaiting renovation. If all of downtown was saved, the revival of downtown would probably be less concentrated than it is now, and the effects of the revival may not be as prominent. While I would have been the first to argue for keeping all of our historic buildings (and not just the great architectural gems) from being demolished, their sacrifice, if you will, is what allowed the rest to be saved. The same thing happened with Grand Rapids' Heritage Hill neighborhood, one of the nations first and largest urban historic districts. In a response to some significant houses being demolished (including the Bissell House) and the city's plan to level 75% of the area in the name of urban renewal, the Heritage Hill Association was formed. The group got the neighborhood placed on the national register, and they fought many battles with the city and developers in order to keep the integrity of the district. Without the loss of some of the area's best homes, the catalyst for change likely would have never happened. Likewise, the loss of some of the great buildings downtown (most importantly city hall) led to the outcry to revitalize what was left. It's a chicken-and-an-egg situation; the renewal, unfortunately, would not have come about without the destruction. |
Wow this is depressing. But a story played out almost everywhere in America. Crappy 60s architecture in greenspace surrounded by parking.
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^^ I think there's more truth to that than you realize. I tend to view urban renewal as a triage action more than a desecration. These areas were already declining. Demolition might have happened anyway without government support, as landowners saw more money in parking spaces (or fire insurance) than they did in small retail/office spaces.
The introduction of the car post-WWII unleashed a huge change on America's downtowns but the large office, government, and medical buildings built during this era maintained at least some kind of economic heartbeat in these obsolete, dying areas. It's not like the car is some passing fad... cities like Grand Rapids still have to accommodate large amounts of parking in their downtown. Tearing down large numbers of decaying buildings was the only cost-effective option available to many cities to bring motorists downtown. |
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There's worse examples of urban renewal but if I can say one thing positive about GR's is that it does make the city look larger and if a few of the high rises were more iconic, it'd definitely could be a draw to the area. |
That view looking up the hill on Michigan makes me so sad. What's crazy is that GR's inner-city is still more intact than most in the state, which kind of tells you just how much there was.
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I just LOVE cheap, copy-cat, 1960s lowrises, said no one ever. I don't see a single redeeming post-1960s building in those photos and it looks like the city is still building the cheap, copy-cat, lowrises of the oughts.
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Good lord that is depressing. The only redeeming quality I see here is that no one will give a damn when the wrecking ball returns to these areas
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Luckily, the official urban renewal area stayed north of Lyons Street. Some great buildings were lost south of there, but most are still intact. Not surprisingly, that's where most people tend to go when they head downtown. |
damn, and i thought Chicago had it bad... what happened?
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I like the "then" more than the "now"
The city looks soulless and dime a dozen in the more recent pics. Boo |
While the losses that were sustained were devastating, it should be noted that the pictures are only "then and now" of the areas that were hit by urban renewal. Half of downtown still managed to survive and is doing quite well:
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5555/...577cdc63_b.jpg DSCN3331 by jonathantherapidian, on Flickr |
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