Youngstown is losing population like most cities in the post-industrial
Midwest. Yet, they're trying to curb it by consolidating the population
and "turning off" parts of the city. Maybe a solution for Detroit? Or
something like it?
Excerpt:
A handful of other Rust Belt cities from Flint, Mich., to Buffalo,
N.Y., have considered similar plans. Youngstown’s experience
underscores the difficulties of urban engineering on such a massive
scale, as the promise of renewal collides with the sacrifices needed to
make it work.
The effort is groundbreaking, in many respects. “The mantra of
cities has always been, ‘We need to revitalize, to grow bigger,’ [but
Youngstown] is saying, ‘Chances are we’re not going to get that
population back, certainly not in the short term and maybe not ever,’ ”
says Jennifer Vey, a fellow in the metropolitan policy program at the
Brookings Institution, in Washington, D.C. “Youngstown plans to shrink
its footprint and ask, ‘How can we best use our resources to produce a
healthier, smaller city?’ ”
Mr. Peyko, editor of The Metro Monthly, a local paper, says that the
idea was “psychologically challenging” at first. “But once I [accepted
it], it opened up all these possibilities for making change,” he says.
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