60 Years of Midwestern Urban Renewal

Researchers at the Institute for Quality Communities at the University of Oklahoma prepared a set of images to show the indelible impact of mid-20th century urban renewal on Midwestern cities.

1 minute read

December 18, 2014, 2:00 PM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


"60 years has made a big difference in the urban form of American cities," writes Shane Hampton to experiment a series of sliding photos that allow side-by-side comparison of Midwestern cities from the 1950s to today.

"The most rapid change occurred during the mid-century urban renewal period that cleared large tracts of urban land for new highways, parking, and public facilities or housing projects. Fine-grained networks of streets and buildings on small lots were replaced with superblocks and megastructures."

Cities portrayed in the striking set of sliding photos: Cincinnati, Detroit, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Cleveland, and Columbus.

Friday, December 12, 2014 in Institute for Quality Communities

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