The urban waterfront in flux : accommodating uncertainty in Brooklyn

Abstract

Urban waterfronts are host to every shade of a city's development. Once pulsating with trade and production, the very reason for the city's existence, the mid 20th century brought jarring macroeconomic shifts and technological change that left this vibrant edge largely abandoned. Nothing remains static at the shore; new value was found in the void amidst the remaining industry. Warehouses, factories, and waterfront infrastructure have often proven adaptable to the post-industrial city. As we continue to redevelop this urban waterfront, are our methods and institutions allowing for flexibility for the next wave of change? I argue that we could improve. As various actors with conflicting interests compete for space at the waterfront, their constructions lend a level of permanence to the built environment. Because the urban form is so enduring, we should seek to maximize flexibility in order to avoid the negative aspects of obsolescence and decline. In this research I investigate the forces that influence our development decisions, the reasons for each claim to the waterfront, and the processes by which one is prioritized over another through the lens of Brooklyn, New York. Brooklyn has a great diversity of land uses, industries, and demographics. Its history is colorful and has led to a present condition replete with challenge and opportunity along the shore. Residential development, industrial retention, maritime industry, green space, and access, are some of the themes that need to be reconciled. Through its recent waterfront development we see clear evidence of societal values manifest in the built environment. It is imperative that we recognize the fleeting nature of even these as well as the exogenous variables that can swiftly transform our way of life. As the city experiences growth and decline, the waterfront in flux is host to both sides of the growth curve. Through both market outcomes and tools of government intervention, cities can seek to set the conditions to gracefully accommodate change and give those in the future a voice. Like a distant object looming on the horizon, the uncertain and the unforeseen are not so formidable if we plan for their imminent arrival.