The Suburbanization of Poverty

[thelakelander]

An interesting trend that could have a significant impact on a sprawling city like Jacksonville.  What should we be doing locally in response to these changing demographics?

The Suburbanization of Poverty

By Emily Badger of The Atlantic Cities

There is no word more evocative in the urban vernacular than "suburb." For most of us, those two syllables conjure a very specific type of place, with a specific kind of people comfortably living there.

"We think about suburbs in one way," says Elizabeth Kneebone, a fellow at the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program. "We have a very stereotypical view of suburbs as middle-class, affluent, Leave-It-To-Beaver type places."

And yet, over the last decade, suburbs have increasingly become home to America's poor. Between 2000 and 2011, the population living in American cities below the poverty line increased by 29 percent. During that same time, across the country in the suburbs of metropolitan areas as diverse as Atlanta and Detroit and Salt Lake City, the ranks of the poor grew by 64 percent. Today, more poor people live in the suburbs (16.4 million of them) than in U.S. cities (13.4 million), despite the perception that poverty remains a uniquely urban problem.

full article: http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2013/05/suburbanization-poverty/5633/

[Tacachale]

Demographic shifts in neighborhoods are nothing new, and very many neighborhoods go through cycles as they age. Arlington was once the most desirable part of the city, and it has seen a lot of change in the last 60 years. The problem with the post-war suburbs is that there are no real models for revitalization as there are with older mixed use neighborhoods.

[thelakelander]

I believe it's easier to apply urban revitalization techniques to early post WWII burbs like Arlington, than newer ones. Arlington is fairly dense for suburbia, close to DT, has a decent street network, a college, and commercial spines that could be walkable.  Having miles of waterfront doesnt hurt either. Out of all the proposed BRT lines JTA has cooked up, Arlington Expressway is the strip where the best things can happen. Also, University would be a great street for a complete or context sensitive streets makeover. Overall, Arlington still has lots of stable areas. It's the aging commercial strips and adjacent multifamily uses that need the most help. The more successful and connected Arlington's main strips can be, the better off the community will be in dealing with demographic change.