This week in the mail I received a brand new book called Gentrification that I got for free from the publisher since I’m a type of “prof of urban studies” … Epoch Center. The big idea of the book is researching the phenomenon regarding metropolitan restructuring including issues of development and the displacement of the urban poor, policies, what makes cities tick, think, and grow, urban geography … in essence “urban renaissance.” These issues are pertinent to me as I go downtown a lot to keep updated on our own gentrification process here as Tucson tries to renew it’s own core.
The way it works in an overly simplified nutshell is that at one time city cores were the vibrant hubs of the city but slowly as automobiles became more prevalent then cities expanded and people kept moving further outward. Often times it led to the social and economic collapse of the core which turned it into rough and downtrodden neighborhoods. However, in many cases we’ve expanded (suburbs) so far that the commute time back into the city has become such a pain that more and more people are moving back into the city.
Author Richard Florida in his book The Rise of the Creative Class argues that cities need a creative class to help renew the city. It is more than simply getting sports arenas, major businesses, or luxurious hotels downtown. This creative class consists of youth, gays, bohemians, professors, scientists, artists, entrepreneurs, and so on. He goes on to say that this creative class needs tolerance and will find cities that are geared that way. I believe Tucson is one of those cities which is why we have such a burgeoning creative class in the downtown, 4th Ave, and University districts. In my mind … this is absolutely exciting and riveting when I think of the future of this city and how we will respond with church planting. Imagine, we don’t really have any churches / church plants immersed in this creative class do we? We don’t have any church plants in these locations at all.
This quote in the book jumped out at me … “new ideas require old buildings.” So true! Urban Renaissance is just that! Renewing the city, bringing the heart beat back into the city. However, I’m afraid that for the most part the church has been silent on the response and we keep running to the fringes of the city rather than back in. Who will go? Who run back in to help renew the city? Who will be the ones to touch this creative class with the Gospel? Who?
