The conservation of historic communities
Description
It is particularly important to study the history of regulations and laws within historic cities and districts to understand how human environments have been shaped over time. It is through such understanding that contemporary issues can be addressed that surface with the advent of new technologies, changing demographics, environmental challenges, and historic preservation efforts within the built environment. One such issue is the loss of affordable housing and the displacement of longtime residents. By using a select neighborhood within the City of New Orleans, Central City, as a case study, and by looking nationally for comparative and distinguishable examples in other cities, this paper intends to show how laws intended to promote preservation, or simply manage landscapes, can sometimes hurt the historic integrity of and the communities that they have been designed to serve. Focus will be placed mostly on blight and possession laws, taxing, zoning within historic districts, the policing powers of eminent domain, and code enforcement that places unnecessary financial burdens on historic communities. The study will explore how updating, modifying, or removing existing laws can help cities navigate current issues that have had negative effects on the historic built environment. This thesis will research historic and contemporary law, maps, documents, and demographics to better understand ways in which revising, rescinding, or keeping certain laws and ordinances can ultimately benefit the lives and landscapes of America's historic environments. Preservationists must understand the laws that influence and shape the built environment to find creative ways that might benefit the tout ensemble of conservation. Saving historic communities should be linked with any preservation management plan. It is important to understand racist uses of early zoning practices, such as redlining, and the repercussions that persist today. To better influence the field, inclusion of underprivileged voices, housing equity, and community, conservation needs to be central to historic preservation. By evaluating zoning, tax law, historic districting, and code enforcement, people can rediscover and reestablish positive influences on how to interact with inherited landscapes in the modern age thus helping to preserve historic communities.