“The 1930s-era map on a gallery wall does not quite match up with A.D. Lewis’ own memories of Denver. He peers closely, his hand holding a pin hovering. Then he pushes the pin at a spot on the map where he once owned a house, and steps back. “This is like 40 years of … [Read more…]
“As gentrification sweeps across Denver, few places show it quite like Welton Street in Five Points, where the tension between the neighborhood’s history and new development is on prominent display along one strip. On its face, gentrification is simply an economic function, the physical manifestations of investment and development in an underserved area. These … [Read more…]
“The most striking thing about Denver’s 1934 Residential Security Map in one respect is just how much smaller the city was back then. Or maybe that’s just because I find it to be a relief that large parts of the city we have today weren’t subject to this practice. Residential Security Maps were a tool … [Read more…]
“Immediately after I parked my car in the Swansea neighbourhood of Denver, Colorado this June, a woman in a white SUV drove by, rolled down her window and yelled: “Not for sale!” Residents of Swansea, Elyria, and Globeville, the neighbourhoods that make up north-east Denver, are receiving stacks of postcards on their porches with … [Read more…]
“When your city is one of the fastest-growing in the country, there are bound to be growing pains. As a person who grew up in Denver, Mayor Michael Hancock agrees with many of his constituents that affordability is becoming a major issue in the Mile High City. “We’ve got to take care of people. … [Read more…]
“I HAVE lived in Harlem for half my life — 30 years. I have seen it in all its complexities: a cultural nexus of black America, the landing place for Senegalese immigrants and Southern transplants, a home for people fleeing oppression and seeking opportunity. Harlem is the birthplace of so much poetry and music … [Read more…]
“In the last 15 years, the city has bestowed Five Points with renewed reverence, and with it has come an influx of developer dollars and changing demographics. Together, these trends are making the historically black neighborhood a focal point in our ongoing conversations about gentrification and race. In this episode, Changing Denver tackles those … [Read more…]