Betting on Transit - Real Estate Development and the Second Avenue Subway in East Harlem
Author
Cully, Isobel Margaret
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2020
Submitted on
2020-06-02
Pages
49
Abstract
New York har i over 100 år lovet en undergrundsbane langs Second Avenue på Manhattans East Side. I 2017 åbnede de første tre stationer på Upper East Side. Næste etape planlægger tre stationer i East Harlem, et historisk arbejderkvarter med overvejende latinske og sorte beboere. Mange lokale frygter, at den nye bane vil fremskynde gentrificering—stigende huslejer, nye byggerier og befolkningsskift, der kan fortrænge langvarige beboere. Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan planerne for Second Avenue Subway allerede medvirker til gentrificering og ændrer East Harlems fysiske miljø—bygninger, gader og arealanvendelse—selv før projektet er færdigt. Den analyserer også, hvordan banen og private ejendomsinteresser gensidigt forstærker hinanden. Projektet har tiltrukket 'affordable luxury'-udviklere til East Harlem—firmaer, der tidligere overså området—som satser på, at deres investeringer stiger i værdi, når banen åbner. Samtidig understøtter disse byggerier selve transitprojektet på tre måder: (1) ved at øge befolkningstætheden og dermed behovet for bedre kollektiv transport; (2) ved at tiltrække en rigere og ofte hvidere befolkning med flere ressourcer til at kæmpe for transportforbedringer; og (3) ved at mobilisere Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), en stærk branchelobby med forbindelser til New Yorks guvernør og mange kommunale og statslige politikere. Denne gensidige støtte gør det mere sandsynligt, at anden etape bliver gennemført, men mange af forandringerne sker på bekostning af East Harlems langvarige beboere.
For more than a century, New York has promised a subway along Second Avenue on Manhattan’s East Side. In 2017, the first three stations opened on the Upper East Side. The next phase plans three stations in East Harlem, a historically working-class neighborhood with predominantly Latinx and Black residents. Many locals worry the new subway will speed up gentrification—rising rents, new construction, and shifting demographics that can push out long-term residents. This thesis examines how plans for the Second Avenue Subway are already helping to drive gentrification and reshape East Harlem’s physical environment—its buildings, streets, and land uses—well before construction is finished. It also analyzes how the subway and private real estate interests reinforce each other. The project has drawn 'affordable luxury' developers to East Harlem—companies that previously overlooked the area—who are betting their investments will gain value once the subway opens. At the same time, these developments support the transit project in three ways: (1) by increasing population density and therefore the need for better transit; (2) by bringing in wealthier, often whiter residents who have more resources to advocate for transit improvements; and (3) by mobilizing the influence of the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), a powerful industry lobby with ties to the Governor of New York and many city and state officials. This mutual support makes the second phase more likely to be built, but many of the resulting changes come at the expense of East Harlem’s long-term residents.
[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]
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