| This dissertation examines the problem of public-private disinvestment in urban neighborhoods, and the evolution of community development planning, using historical research, political analysis, and case examples. Disparate patterns of metropolitan growth and decline in the United States are the legacy of industrial location decisions, economic racism, and the suburban bias of federal highway and housing programs. This has been exacerbated by the life cycle or stage theory of neighborhood decline, which is used in real estate appraisal. Urban planners have applied this theory to encourage the "deliberate dispersion" of the urban poor, followed by the eventual re-use of abandoned areas.; The life cycle theory of neighborhood decline was challenged by community organizations in cities such as Chicago and Pittsburgh that organized against financial institution redlining, triage planning, and federal housing scandals. This organizing leveraged financial investment that otherwise might not have been made, creating a system of social capitalism defined by financial regulation (such as the Community Reinvestment Act and Home Mortgage Disclosure Act), investment subsidies, and social collateral in neighborhoods. Social collateral is comprised of locally-based organizations and programs (including smaller community development financial institutions such as South Shore Bank and Neighborhood Housing Services) that coordinate, legitimize, and protect these investments, thereby enhancing their social and economic value for existing residents and businesses. This alternative theory of capital access and community development places institutional controls on the "self-fulfilling prophecy" of neighborhood decline to reduce the social and economic costs of urban physical abandonment.; Financial regulation creates the context for community-based planning and development, but federal legislation has not been enough to generate investment in redlined areas, due to the reluctance of federal regulators to delay or deny bank regulatory applications, and their lack of knowledge about local credit needs. Financial regulation on its own will not resolve the disparities of American metropolitan development, but the involvement of financial institutions and community-based organizations is a necessary prerequisite. The financial industry continues to resist social capitalism, motivated more by profits than social responsibility. |
