Urban Renewal

Transportation planners sold the idea of urban renewal in the latter half of the twentieth century as a way to encourage development of urban centers. New highways and bypasses would allow people to swiftly move in and out of city centers. Planners argued that the highways would also eliminate blight, because derelict dwellings would be demolished to make way for the new throughfares. 

In practice, urban renewal efforts uprooted Black communities and made the housing segregation problem worse. When the Michigan Department of Transportation determined where to locate I-675 around Saginaw, the planners never considered any alternatives to cutting through the predominately Black First Ward. Similarly, in Detroit, the Chrysler Freeway cut through historic Black Bottom and Paradise Valley, displacing Black homeowners along with business owners. Community networks were bisected or entirely destroyed as Black people found themselves without homes or resources. 

The federal Renewal Assistance Administration existed, in part, to assisted people in finding new places to live. However, the government supplied little to no aid to dislocated Black communities. The Department of Transportation demolished affordable housing, but no one built new, affordable housing to offset the losses. 

Saginaw technically had an open housing ordinance, which should have allowed Black families to integrate white neighborhoods. However, the Renewal Assistance Administration simply asked the Saginaw Chamber of Commerce to encourage residents to “open up” the city’s west side. While the Chamber of Commerce agreed publicly, behind the scenes the Chamber also worked to ensure that any agreements were nonbinding. The Board of Realtors enacted a policy to “pre show” houses in white neighbors before listing them so that white buyers had first dibs. 

Across Michigan, urban renewal projects led to Black people living in conditions that were no better than before and, in many cases, worse. In Detroit, people who were displaced ended up in housing that was next to the new highways. Not only did the highways decrease property values nearby, but they also increased health risks due to elevated levels of air pollution. Those living near the freeways have higher rates of asthma, respiratory illnesses, and cancer. 

SEE:

“Freeways are Detroit’s Most Enduring Monuments to Racism,”
Detroit Free Press

“The Detroit Wall: A Tale of How Federal Policy Helped Divide a City,” Daily Detroit