One Step Ahead of the Bulldozer: Historic Preservation in Houston, Texas

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

7-30-2018

Publication Title

Journal Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability

Abstract

Community development corporations (CDCs) are often at the forefront of providing affordable housing and social services, restoring disinvested communities, and rebuilding neighborhoods. Most CDCs work in older, inner-city communities that, given their age and location, likely contain older and historic buildings. Thus, there is a seemingly logical overlap between community developers’ target neighborhoods and the tools, strategies, and resources associated with historic preservation. This article uses a qualitative case study of Houston’s Avenue CDC to explore how and why community developers use preservation within the context of a high-growth city. For more than two decades, Avenue has worked in three core neighborhoods in an effort to stave off gentrification via teardowns and townhome redevelopment. The findings show that, for community developers in growing cities, carefully crafted preservation strategies may be a way to challenge the forces of gentrification, displacement, and wholesale physical destruction.

Original Citation

Stephanie Ryberg-Webster (2019) One step ahead of the bulldozer: historic preservation in Houston, Texas, Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability, 12:1, 15-33, DOI: 10.1080/17549175.2018.1501411

DOI

10.1080/17549175.2018.1501411

Volume

12

Issue

1

Link to Full Text

Share

COinS