Urban Neighborhoods

Not long ago, neighborhoods such as the South Bronx, South Central Los Angeles, and Boston's Roxbury were crime-ridden wastelands of vacant lots and burned-out buildings, notorious symbols of urban decay. In House by House, Block by Block, Alexander von Hoffman tells the remarkable stories of how local activists and community groups helped turn these areas around. For sixty years, federal policy has attempted with little success to solve the problems of housing and poverty in America's inner cities. Yet increasingly, local organizations are picking up where Washington has left off. In a series of dramatic and colorful narratives, von Hoffman shows how these groups are revitalizing once desperate neighborhoods in five major cities: New York, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. The unlikely heroes include: the tough-talking Bronx priest who made apartment buildings for low-income people glisten in the midst of ruins and despair; the "crazy white man" who scrambled to save Chicago's historic Black Metropolis from the wrecking ball; the Boston cops who built a task force that put the brakes on youth gangs. Thanks to locally-based, bootstrap efforts like these, in inner-city neighborhoods across the country, crime rates are falling, real estate values are rising, and businesses are returning. Von Hoffman also shows that grass-roots work can't do it alone: successful revitalization needs the support of local government and access to business and foundation capital. Based on years of research and more than a hundred interviews, this book is the first systematic account of the dramatic urban revival now going on in the United States. House by House, Block by Block will be a must-read for anyone who cares about the fate of America's cities.

What makes a "good neighborhood"? Can one neighborhood be good for all people? Brower's study examines the variable image of the ideal residential area in contemporary and earlier writings, from utopian visions and popular media to historical records and the findings of social science research. Brower identifies four common "ideal" neighborhood types, each providing a distinct and specific residential experience that suits a particular way of life. He details the characteristics of each of these "good neighborhoods," and argues that their coexistence in a single urban environment is not only possible, but desirable; it creates a healthy variety of residential areas that, together, suit the needs and desires of different urban dwellers. This absorbing and timely study will be of interest to scholars and professionals in urban studies, urban design and planning, environmental studies, environment psychology, and sociology.

Elise M. Bright is associate professor at the Institute of Urban Studies, School of Urban and Public Affairs, University of Texas at Arlington.

In The Economies of Central City Neighborhoods Bingham and Zhang examine the location of industry employment in a variety of producer and consumer-oriented industries in relation to major neighborhood characteristics such as demographic, labor force, socioeconomic, and housing variables. This study is informative and illuminating to central city revitalization/redevelopment planning and related efforts that often take place at the neighborhood level.

"Those involved in urban neighborhood and community research with an applied focus will find in this volume a number of useful and practical examples of how to do it. . . . The modesty with which some of the results is presented is refreshing, and the candor with which the authors treat their shortcomings is commendable. Several authors make it quite clear that good research does not necessarily produce the best information for those working to improve the social fabric of urban communities. On the other hand, there is a certain amount of optimism in these essays for those who want to see their research produce positive results in the communities they study. . . . [The] essays are clear and the points are well made and carefully documented. An excellent source of information, research findings, and policy recommendations." Choice

"Williams's past experience as a community organizer for havenots' is clearly apparent in this carefully researched book, as his conviction that neighborhood organizations can play a key role in revitalizing urban life. After examining the setting for neighborhood organizations and discussing how neighborhoods change, he delves into the internal dynamics of those organizations. Chapters are devoted to various problems that neighborhood organizations have defined, such as crime and education; a final section analyzes neighborhood groups as conflict managers and mediators. The book offers a good survey of literature on neighborhood organizations, both theoretical and applied, and provides readers a unique bibliography of selected materials, with brief comments about each major topic; each chapter also has extensive notes and bibliography. Both grass-roots organizers and professionals in social work and city management will find this book useful." Choice

Ralph B. Taylor is professor of criminal justice at Temple University in Philadelphia.