Far from it, but is Chicago heading to turn into Detroit 2.0? (Washington: 2013, crime)

[LeotheOrangeCat]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Chicago is building more residential towers than any other city so someone must be moving in.

http://chicago.curbed.com/2017/3/24/...r-construction

yes, downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods have significant population increases

[InternationalWaves]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Chicago is building more residential towers than any other city so someone must be moving in.

http://chicago.curbed.com/2017/3/24/...r-construction

So what happens to the Southside and rough neighborhoods of the city that need the most revitalization? That further illustrates the fact that new comers won't be a factor on improving the decaying areas of the city.

[via chicago]

Originally Posted by InternationalWaves

So what happens to the Southside and rough neighborhoods of the city that need the most revitalization? That further illustrates the fact that new comers won't be a factor on improving the decaying areas of the city.

The same thing that always happens, people priced out of areas with increasing rents will move to cheaper areas. Was logan square trendy 20 years ago? No, because wicker park was still affordable. People getting priced out of logan will still need somewhere to live. Single family homes are basically out the question for the middle class on the north side today. You will see more and more people taking serious looks at the south and west sides. Bronzeville, bridgeport, pilsen, and other areas to the south are already seeing increased interst. East garfied park is also right in the path of the ever expanding west loop/Fulton market boom. There are additional transit stops planned near the United center. You will start to see investment pushed that way as well. Look at a street view compared with west Chicago Ave in 2007 vs today...in under a decade it's completely transformed, and the changes have expanded almost all the way to austin. Not so long ago that was no man's land until you got within a mile or two of downtown

[Magicalmoe]

Everyone turns a blind eye and focuses on the positives to make themselves feel ok. As long as the North side is doing fine Chicago is. Half of the city is becoming a hollowed out shell. Once vibrant, populated, tight knit neighborhoods are now drug/crime infested burgeoning urban prairies and no one thinks its a problem. The demographics are changing right in front of us. North Side is following the trend with the wealthy increasingly occupying city addresses. That's but a percentage of the city. The middle class is drying up and large sections of town are dying. Not reflective of a city ripe with opportunities and an abundance of jobs. It will eventually/is effect the entire ecosystem. Everyone has a chance to share in a piece of prosperity in a truly great city right?

[Larry Siegel]

Originally Posted by flamadiddle

As noted, much ado about nothing. There are some demographic shifts occurring... and I'd add this to IrishIllini's comments above regarding the Southside. As a kid, I lived in the area around 79th and Crandon, which you would think by the news today has turned into a war torn third world country. Thanks to google maps, one can drive through the area now from the comfort of their living room, which I did recently. I was actually shocked at how well kept the homes were! It actually looks like a pretty damn nice place to live!

So nope, not Detroit 2, just some ebb and flow.

Yes, the area around South Shore Hospital is pretty, and there are some fine homes, but it's still dangerous. I am looking forward to the day when at least some African American neighborhoods in Chicago are as safe as non-minority ones.

[compactspace]

Originally Posted by InternationalWaves

So what happens to the Southside and rough neighborhoods of the city that need the most revitalization? That further illustrates the fact that new comers won't be a factor on improving the decaying areas of the city.

How do you figure? People are moving into Chicago's affluent neighborhoods. People are moving out of its poor ones. If the city is ever fully revitalized, it'll be from the inside out -- bombed out neighborhoods become marginal, marginal neighborhoods become affluent. Newcomers have everything to do with this process.

[InternationalWaves]

Originally Posted by Magicalmoe

Everyone turns a blind eye and focuses on the positives to make themselves feel ok. As long as the North side is doing fine Chicago is. Half of the city is becoming a hollowed out shell. Once vibrant, populated, tight knit neighborhoods are now drug/crime infested burgeoning urban prairies and no one thinks its a problem. The demographics are changing right in front of us. North Side is following the trend with the wealthy increasingly occupying city addresses. That's but a percentage of the city. The middle class is drying up and large sections of town are dying. Not reflective of a city ripe with opportunities and an abundance of jobs. It will eventually/is effect the entire ecosystem. Everyone has a chance to share in a piece of prosperity in a truly great city right?

Magical words! Well said. Yes Indeed.

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by Magicalmoe

Everyone turns a blind eye and focuses on the positives to make themselves feel ok. As long as the North side is doing fine Chicago is. Half of the city is becoming a hollowed out shell. Once vibrant, populated, tight knit neighborhoods are now drug/crime infested burgeoning urban prairies and no one thinks its a problem. The demographics are changing right in front of us. North Side is following the trend with the wealthy increasingly occupying city addresses. That's but a percentage of the city. The middle class is drying up and large sections of town are dying. Not reflective of a city ripe with opportunities and an abundance of jobs. It will eventually/is effect the entire ecosystem. Everyone has a chance to share in a piece of prosperity in a truly great city right?

Yours is a great post. But it makes me wonder: what if Chicago did become "successful" by removing the underclass, forced out by having no way to make a living and survive, would it become a "truly great city"? Is San Francisco a truly great (and successful) city when only those who had a lot of money can live there? Can the same question be asked of New York?

I can't predict the future, but I believe that Chicago, given its global megacity status and the infrastructure that makes it so, will probably follow the route I more or less described above. It will become one of those "successful" cities like New York, San Francisco, Boston that will be enclaves for the wealthy, those who can afford it. But it, like its bretherans I suggested, won't be truly great or even very functional.

"Everyone has a chance to share in a piece of prosperity in a truly great city right?" That's how it should be. And that's why we don't have truly great cities.

[Spreadofknowledge]

it should be noted african americans arent the only ones leaving in droves. despite the hispanic community growing slightly especially mexicans, chicago's puerto rican population has been shrinking since the 2000 census. humboldt park, historically the main puerto rican neighborhood, has very few ricans nowadays. many leaving due to high crime and gentrification, the weather being a cherry on top. and they arent going to other neighborhoods or suburbs, most are going straight to the eastcoast. (pennsylvania, virginia, florida etc)

source: american factfinder

[Alacran]

Yeah. People gotta understand that it's lower income people leaving. Majority being Long standing African american neighborhoods.
Mexican neighborhoods are still pretty stable and if they are leaving it's mostly to the suburbs to finally achieve their "american dream" of owning a home.
We know there hasn't been many Low income or working class white neighborhoods left for a while.

Anyway, the near north up to mid north parts of the city are as active as they've been. It just happens that the demographics there prefer to not have children till much later and if so, much less children which does make a difference.