Robert Mark Silverman

DAWN OF THE DEAD CITY: AN EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS OF VACANT ADDRESSES IN BUFFALO, NY 2008-2010

ABSTRACT: This article examines residential vacancy patterns in Buffalo, NY, using data from a unique data set. It includes variables from HUD Aggregate USPS Administrative Data on Address Vacancies, the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates for 2005–2009, housing choice voucher (HCV) records of local public housing agencies, and municipal in rem property records. Multiple regression is used to identify significant relationships between vacancy patterns, socioeconomic characteristics, and institutional factors. The findings from this analysis suggest that the percent of vacant residential properties increases in census tracts with elevated poverty rates, higher percentages of renters receiving rental assistance, and long-term vacancies. They also suggest that the percent of abandoned residential properties increases in census tracts with highly concentrated black populations, elevated poverty rates, long-term vacancies, and higher percentages of business addresses. We conclude that these relationships are unique to older core cities experiencing systemic population and job losses. These cities struggle with a distinct type of long-term vacant and abandoned structures, which we label zombie properties. They can be contrasted with vacant and abandoned properties in transitional or regenerating areas. We offer recommendations for further analysis of zombie properties in these urban settings.

CDCs and Charitable Organizations in the Urban South Mobilizing Social Capital Based on Race and Religion for Neighborhood Revitalization

This article examines how community development corporations (CDCs) and other nonprofits access social capital when constructing collaborative partnerships for urban revitalization projects. Data from interviews with the directors of CDCs and charitable organizations in Jackson, Mississippi, are used for the analysis in this research. The findings indicate that the organizations studied mobilize two mutually exclusive forms of social capital when pursuing partnerships. In some instances, social capital based on religion is mobilized. In other cases, social capital based on race is mobilized. The conclusions of the article highlight the relationship between the embeddedness of social capital in local context and the degree to which it can be mobilized to stimulate neighborhood development. Moreover, the extent to which social capital is overemphasized in current social science discourse is explored.

Caught in the Middle: Community Development Corporations (CDCs) and the Conflict between Grassroots and Instrumental Forms of Citizen Participation

This article examines the role of citizen participation in community development corporations (CDCs). It is argued that CDCs are caught between two distinct forms of participation: instrumental participation that focuses on activities that support project and program activities of CDCs, and grassroots participation that focuses on expanding the role of citizens in local decision-making processes. A continuum based on these two forms of citizen participation is introduced. It is suggested that CDCs are often in the middle of the continuum where they must balance pressures to expand the scope of grassroots participation against the need to use citizen participation techniques to facilitate project and program implementation. The article is based on a series of in-depth interviews with the executive directors of CDCs in Detroit. Michigan. Recommendations growing out of the research focus on how the tendency toward conflicts between the instrumental goals of CDCs and the longstanding value of grassroots activism can be managed better.

The role of citizen participation and action research principles in Main Street revitalization: An analysis of a local planning project

This article examines the use of citizen participation techniques during the planning process for neighborhood revitalization in the Village of Depew which is an industrial suburb of Buffalo, New York. The article focuses on how action research principles can inform and enhance traditional approaches to citizen participation. In particular, we discuss our role as university-based consultants in the local planning process and how drawing from action research principles helped us remain focused on advocating for broad-based citizen participation. Our analysis was based on the application of action research principles and participant observation techniques. During the time that each of us was involved in the planning process for Depews neighborhood revitalization, reflexive field notes and other data were collected. The article critiques how citizen participation was used to plan for neighborhood revitalization in Depew, and discusses the degree to which action research principles can be applied to future citizen participation efforts.

Making Waves or Treading Water? An Analysis of Charter Schools in New York State.

This article compares charter schools and other public schools in New York State. School Report Card (SRC) data measuring student, teacher, and school characteristics from the state’s 16 urban school districts with charter schools were examined. Descriptive and multivariate analysis was used. The findings suggest that there are more similarities in student outcomes between charter schools and other public schools than differences. Although charter schools had higher sixth- and eighth-grade math scores, outcomes were comparable along other measures. Systemic issues, such as poverty, suspensions, and poor attendance had relatively stronger effects on student performance regardless of school type.

William Worthy’s Concept of “Institutional Rape” Revisited: Anchor Institutions and Residential Displacement in Buffalo, NY

This article examines the role of anchor institutions in the urban revitalization process. We use case study analysis to understand how concerns about residential displacement are addressed by anchor institutions in the urban planning process. This analysis is designed to build upon William Worthy’s critique of anchor-based development during the 1960s and 1970s. Our analysis examines the degree to which his concept of “institutional rape” applies to contemporary urban revitalization efforts. The article focuses on university and medical campus expansion in Buffalo, NY. We describe how the planned expansion of the Buffalo-Niagara Medical Campus has raised concerns about the displacement of residents living in a neighboring subsidized housing development. We conclude that despite incremental improvements in the planning process designed to facilitate coordination between anchor institutions and grassroots interests, resident empowerment has not been fully realized. Instead, the planning process continues to be dominated by institutional interests with limited community input. Consequently, residents worked through grassroots organizations, local government, and the media to resist anchor-based development. In light of these findings, we recommend that the role of residents in the planning process for neighborhood revitalization become more institutionalized through the negotiation of community benefit agreements and other linkages.

Central city socio‐economic characteristics and public participation strategies: A comparative analysis of the Niagara Falls region's municipalities in the USA and Canada

Purpose – This article aims to examine the mechanisms used by municipalities to stimulate public participation and, in part, to argue that contrasts between the socio‐economic make‐up of central cities in the USA and Canada explain these divergent techniques.Design/methodology/approach – The article is based on a survey of planning departments measuring the types of public participation strategies used by local governments.Findings – The articles findings indicate that Canadian municipalities adopt a broader range of public participation techniques related to: voluntarism and public engagement, neighborhood and strategic planning, and e‐government. In contrast, the articles findings indicate that US municipalities are more likely to promote public participation through mechanisms such as annual community meetings and referendums on public issues.Research limitations/implications – The conclusion of the article offers recommendations for expanding the scope of public participation and developing strategi...

Sandwiched between Patronage and Bureaucracy: The Plight of Citizen Participation in Community-based Housing Organisations in the US

This article examines how directors of community-based housing organisations (CBHOs) in the US define the role of citizen participation in their organisations. In particular, it describes how local political and administrative structures affect the scope of citizen participation in the governance and decision-making processes of CBHOs. This is an important topic since these organisations implement housing and community development programmes in urban neighbourhoods, and citizen participation has been considered important to the legitimacy of these efforts. The analysis is based on in-depth interviews with CBHO executive directors in Buffalo, New York. In particular, the executive directors of CBHOs that concentrate their efforts on the management, development and rehabilitation of affordable housing were interviewed. In addition to data from in-depth interviews, data from fieldnotes, the US census, IRS 990 forms and informal conversations with local government officials and representatives of intermediary organisations were used in the analysis. Existing theories concerning citizen participation and non-profit administration are elaborated upon and applied to CBHOs. The extent to which these organisations create opportunities for grassroots planning is considered and recommendations for expanding citizen participation are proposed.

Housing Abandonment and Demolition: Exploring the Use of Micro-Level and Multi-Year Models

Policies focusing on enforcing property code violations and the improvement of vacant properties are argued to be more efficacious than demolition policies to fight urban blight. This study applies parcel level data to a multi-year hybrid modeling structure. A fine-grained analysis is conducted on the dynamic patterns of abandonment and demolition for a unique period of four years before and after the City of Buffalo’s stepped-up demolition efforts. Results showed that proximity to vacant and abandoned properties, sustained over the years, had the greatest impact on the possibility of a property being abandoned. The second greatest positive impact on property abandonment was small lot front size. Results also showed that neighborhood vacancy density had the greatest negative impact on surrounding housing sales prices over the years. There was no significant impact of demolition on housing sales prices. These findings suggested that the City should aim to have more incentive programs that are tailored to control the number of vacant properties, rather than focusing primarily on demolition-oriented programs.

The Four Horsemen of the Fair Housing Apocalypse: A Critique of Fair Housing Policy in the USA

This article examines US fair housing policy from a critical perspective. We describe the impact of the expansion of neoliberal ideology on the fair housing assistance program (FHAP), the fair housing initiatives program (FHIP), and the scope of US Department of Justice activities. Prior findings from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and IRS Form 990 are summarized. We argue that neoliberalism has contributed to the underdevelopment, underfunding, and poor implementation of US fair housing policy. We offer three recommendations for fair housing reform. The first focuses on the need to remove fair housing activities from HUD and place them in an independent fair housing agency. The second focuses on the need for the federal government to mandate fair housing enforcement across all governmental programs and agencies. The third focuses on the need for increased lobbying, litigation, and activism by community-based advocacy organizations for reform.