A Reevaluation of Urban Renewal in San Francisco
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Date
2008
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MA in Historic Preservation
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To view a complete copy of this thesis please contact Goucher College Special Collections & Archives at archives@goucher.edu or (410) 337-6075.
Subjects
Urban renewal -- California -- San Francisco -- Case studies
Architecture, Modern -- 20th century -- Conservation and restoration -- California -- San Francisco
Diamond Heights (San Francisco, Calif.) -- Conservation and restoration
Golden Gateway (San Francisco, Calif.) -- Conservation and restoration
Historic preservation -- Theses
Architecture, Modern -- 20th century -- Conservation and restoration -- California -- San Francisco
Diamond Heights (San Francisco, Calif.) -- Conservation and restoration
Golden Gateway (San Francisco, Calif.) -- Conservation and restoration
Historic preservation -- Theses
Abstract
Scholars are reevaluating the legacy of post-war federal urban renewal (1949 to 1973) and the means to preserve it. Initial success gave way to growing angst and by the early 1970s, urban renewal was seen by many as a colossal mistake that destroyed hundreds of neighborhoods in an ill-fated attempt to rejuvenate American cities. This legacy inhibits the preservation of urban renewal projects. This thesis seeks to contribute to the understanding of the preservation of urban renewal by looking at two projects in San Francisco: Golden Gateway and Diamond Heights. These appear to have been successful without incurring the negative impacts associated with urban renewal. A fuller understanding of these projects will help flesh out the complex nature of urban renewal in San Francisco and present the threats to preserving urban renewal projects. Chapter I presents a brief introduction of the origins of urban renewal and the preservation issues associated with it. Chapter II describes the context of urban renewal in San Francisco in the post-war period. Chapter III presents the history and significance of the Diamond Heights project and Chapter IV, the history and significance of the Golden Gateway. The final chapter considers the threats posed by incremental changes to urban renewal projects and concludes that better understanding of their accomplishments may be the key to their preservation.