Historic preservation as a community development tool in legacy city neighbourhoods

Abstract

Abstract For legacy cities, population decline and economic restructuring contributed to the challenges facing their built environments including low demand, oversupply, and high rates of vacancy and abandonment. Amidst this backdrop, there is intense pressure for demolition, yet legacy cities also possess rich stocks of historic resources that can potentially serve as physical assets for community development. Market-based historic preservation incentives such as historic rehabilitation tax credit (RTC) programs are important tools for facilitating reinvestment in legacy cities. These tools are also criticized for primarily benefiting the real estate developers spearheading these projects or creating inequitable neighbourhood change. This research analyzes federal historic RTC projects in two St. Louis, Missouri neighbourhoods – Lafayette Square and Midtown Alley – between 1997 and 2010 and asks: in what ways do investments supported by historic tax credit programs function as a tool for legacy city community development? Through interviews and document analysis, I find that historic tax credit projects support neighbourhood stabilization by minimizing vacancies and shifting redevelopment approaches away from demolition and towards preservation. These projects help build capacity among real estate developers to take on historic preservation redevelopments in other neighbourhoods. However, residents and community-based organizations are often disconnected from these projects, limiting their usefulness as a community development tool.