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Gotham Gazette
Topics / Community Development
Community Development Newsletter
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The Topic
Community development refers to issues that affect the political, social, cultural and economic life of specific neighborhoods -- and especially to the efforts of groups based in those neighborhoods to address challenges (e.g. developing housing, improving access to credit, assisting local businesses, creating jobs, maintaining public spaces) and to activate neighborhood residents as participants in local politics.
The Context
Low-income and working class communities in New York City have long faced problems -- from low-paying jobs to low-performing schools, from skyrocketing asthma rates to a lack of affordable housing. These communities often have little political power, but they are frequently the sites of vibrant activism and creativity. Out of the social upheavals of the 1960s came the multi-purpose community development corporations (the first one was in Bedford-Stuyvesant), and new community organizing groups such as ACORN and the Industrial Areas Foundation. More recently, grassroots organizing groups confront issues like police brutality and environmental justice.

If in a diverse megalopolis like New York City, there is something curious about viewing a neighborhood as a free-standing universe, still, because so many New Yorkers consider their community as an essential part of their identity, and because political conflicts tend to play out in specific places, a community is a powerful lens through which to view the city's political and social dynamics.

This Month's Article ...

Residents of one of New York's poorest areas would like to see the city work with local groups to promote sustainable neighborhoods, a cleaner environment and "green collar" jobs.

Recent Community Development Articles from the Gotham Gazette:

Bringing 'Green Collar' Jobs to the South Bronx | Can Co-ops Help Close the 'Grocery Gap'? | As the Economy Worsens: Helping People Find Jobs | The City Responds to the Foreclosure Crisis

Researching Community Development ...

The Value of Street Life
A report by Transportation Alternatives that argues that livable streets - which prioritize pedestrian activity over driving - are a boon to the economy. It finds that pedestrian only zones result in higher foot traffic and retail sales. Property values are also higher on quieter streets, those with calmer traffic, and in areas with more open space. (August 13, 2008)

Small Businesses Closing in Downtown Brooklyn
Although small businesses in Downtown Brooklyn survived "large-scale disinvestment" in the '80s and '90s, they are having trouble staying open during the current real estate boom, according to a new report by the Urban Justice Center. Thirty-five of the 61 small businesses surveyed have been displaced or closed due to rising rents or redevelopment. The 2004 rezoning of the area has contributed to this, the report says. (August 1, 2008)

Bronx Boom - or Bust?
Recent investment in the Bronx has done little to benefit the largely black and Latino residents of the northwest part of the borough, according to a report by Urban Justice Center and the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition. The report found, for example, that almost a third of the community's residents are unemployed and not looking for work, and that 79 percent of those unemployed and looking for a job had been unemployed for at least six months. To remedy the problem, the report calls for jobs that pay a living wage, programs to train residents and prepare them for work, and better information on job opportunities in the community. (July 31, 2008)

Preliminary Mayor's Management Report
An interim look at the performance of various city agencies was released yesterday in a report called the Preliminary Mayor's Management Report. Published annually, it takes a look at the city's performance in the first four months of the fiscal year and forecasts performance expectations. Much of the information can be broken down by individual agency, issue, or community. Some significant highlights were: Sewer back up complaints jumped by 23 percent; the average response time to heat complaints rose by 50 percent (although stays within the goal of seven hours); and major felony crimes in schools were nearly a third lower than the same quarter last year. (February 15, 2008)

Equal Opportunity in Construction
Three years after Mayor Michael Bloomberg created his Commission on Construction Opportunity to bring more women, blacks, Hispanics and Asians into construction jobs, a report by David Jason Fischer of the Center for an Urban Future examines the progress to date. In "Something to Build On," Fischer finds the commission has fallen short of many of its goals but has created a foundation for expanding opportunities in the construction industry. (February 13, 2008)

City Limits
City Limits is New York City's urban affairs news magazine, with daily, weekly, and monthly publications -- and the best place to look for jobs in community development in NYC.
The Housing and Community Development KnowledgePlex
KnowledgePlex organizes and presents the most up-to-date, comprehensive collection of publications from all of its partner organizations. By browsing or searching KnowledgePlex, users can find highly relevant research, case studies, best practices, scholarly articles, opinion pieces, and other material related to the affordable housing and community development fields.
National Housing Institute/Shelterforce Online
The National Housing Institute was founded in 1975 as an independent nonprofit organization that examines the issues causing the crisis in housing and community in America. NHI examines the key issues affecting affordable housing and community development practitioners and their supporters. These issues include housing, jobs, safety, and education, with an emphasis on housing and economic development, as well as poverty and racism, disinvestment and lack of employment, and breakdown of the social fabric.
Reality TV
Your source for reality tv news and information as it happens.
Center for Community Change
The Center for Community Change is helping low-income people, especially people of color, build powerful, effective organizations through which they can change their communities and public policies for the better.
Project for Public Spaces: Jane Jacobs
PPS was founded as a non-profit in 1975 to build upon the pioneering Street Life Project of writer-sociologist William H. Whyte. Since then they have developed a unique process for transforming public spaces, which they call "Placemaking."
Beyond Voting Wiki
A citizen’s tool calling for networking to change city governance at a grassroots level.
Save Our Parks!
A blog by local residents who are opposed to the taking of Macombs Dam and Mullaly parks by the Yankees for a new stadium.
Find your Community Board
A list with contact and web address information for local community boards in all 5 boroughs. Community Board websites typically contain demographic and statistical data, in addition to constituent services.
Union Square Awards
The Union Square Awards seek to encourage grassroots activism as a means of strengthening communities throughout New York City, and they recognize notable contributions to the educational, economic and cultural life of New York City.

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