Legacy Cities
From Rust to Revitalization
Our urbanized world is one of constant change—change propelled by new economic drivers, demographic shifts, a warming climate, rapid technology advances, and an increasingly diverse urban populace. The evolution of the industrial economy to become the knowledge economy— reflected in these elements of change—has led to the concentration of people, capital, and corporations in fewer locations.
While the cities that have capitalized on change are booming, others—particularly many of America’s “legacy cities” that thrived during the industrial era—have struggled to find new ways to expand their economies, attract new residents, and reorient their growth for the 21st century.
Innovation has been an unwavering ideal and economic guidepost in the United States. America’s legacy cities are important for their role in not only contributing to American innovation, but also for the success they experienced during their heyday. They drove the economic narrative of the country and played a pivotal role in the national identity. These legacy cities, which emerged as centers of 20thcentury industrial innovation, have faced the challenges of economic reinvention while absorbing numerous blows such as the loss of businesses and residents and declining downtowns. For years, the prevailing theory was that cities were the victims or beneficiaries of international and national economic forces—that cities themselves could do little to influence their economic fortunes.
Clearly, the shift from manufacturing to technology has hurt many small and medium-sized cities. The globalization of industries such as steel, textiles, and auto manufacturing reinforces the notion that powerful global forces can upend local economies. Change is inevitable, and the pace of change is increasing with the option for every city to grow by default or design, by choice or chance. They can accept whatever comes along or they can shape the future they want.
Today, as American innovation continues to evolve in the knowledge economy, creative real estate and land use strategies can help cities maximize the positive impacts and minimize the negative ones associated with change. This is critical because all development is not created equal. Some developments will make a community a better place to live, work or visit; others will not. Too many public officials have an “It’ll do” attitude toward new development. They will simply accept anything that comes along even if it is at odds with a community’s well-thought-out vision for the future. Unfortunately, communities that say yes to anything tend to get the worst of everything.
Against this backdrop, the Urban Land Institute has produced Legacy Cities: From Rust to Revitalization, which explores a cross section of legacy cities that have used leadership, creative sources of funding, and other strategies to reinvent themselves. Not discounting the impact of geography and luck, the case studies in this report demonstrate that successful cities make choices about how and where to grow.
Report Summary: Our urbanized world is one of constant change—change propelled by new economic drivers, demographic shifts, a warming climate, rapid technology advances, and an increasingly diverse urban populace. The evolution of the industrial economy to become the knowledge economy— reflected in these elements of change—has led to the concentration of people, capital, and corporations in fewer locations.
While the cities that have capitalized on change are booming, others—particularly many of America’s “legacy cities” that thrived during the industrial era—have struggled to find new ways to expand their economies, attract new residents, and reorient their growth for the 21st century.
Innovation has been an unwavering ideal and economic guidepost in the United States. America’s legacy cities are important for their role in not only contributing to American innovation, but also for the success they experienced during their heyday. They drove the economic narrative of the country and played a pivotal role in the national identity. These legacy cities, which emerged as centers of 20thcentury industrial innovation, have faced the challenges of economic reinvention while absorbing numerous blows such as the loss of businesses and residents and declining downtowns. For years, the prevailing theory was that cities were the victims or beneficiaries of international and national economic forces—that cities themselves could do little to influence their economic fortunes.
Clearly, the shift from manufacturing to technology has hurt many small and medium-sized cities. The globalization of industries such as steel, textiles, and auto manufacturing reinforces the notion that powerful global forces can upend local economies. Change is inevitable, and the pace of change is increasing with the option for every city to grow by default or design, by choice or chance. They can accept whatever comes along or they can shape the future they want.
Today, as American innovation continues to evolve in the knowledge economy, creative real estate and land use strategies can help cities maximize the positive impacts and minimize the negative ones associated with change. This is critical because all development is not created equal. Some developments will make a community a better place to live, work or visit; others will not. Too many public officials have an “It’ll do” attitude toward new development. They will simply accept anything that comes along even if it is at odds with a community’s well-thought-out vision for the future. Unfortunately, communities that say yes to anything tend to get the worst of everything.
Against this backdrop, the Urban Land Institute has produced Legacy Cities: From Rust to Revitalization, which explores a cross section of legacy cities that have used leadership, creative sources of funding, and other strategies to reinvent themselves. Not discounting the impact of geography and luck, the case studies in this report demonstrate that successful cities make choices about how and where to grow.