How US cultural districts reshape neighbourhoods

Abstract

Cultural districts are an increasingly popular and important element of both urban and cultural experiences in the United States. Cultural districts get invoked as a tool for revitalising neighbourhoods and regions, cultivating arts and cultural resources, and other goals. This article briefly describes the phenomenon of cultural districts in the United States, reviews some claims made about their impacts, and provides evidence of districts' effects. Neighourhood-level statistical analyses identify socioeconomic trends in neighbourhoods affected by districts. The results reflect the heterogeneity in cultural districts and in cities' experiences with them. The findings inform policies supporting creative placemaking in general and cultural districts as a system. HOW U.S. CULTURAL DISTRICTS RESHAPE NEIGHBOURHOODSIncreasingly popular and important in urban and cultural experiences, Cultural districts serve purposes like revitalising communities, sustainable economic development, and cultivating arts and cultural resources (Brooks and Kushner 2001). The wave of cultural districts has kept far ahead of objective analysis of their effectiveness and sustainability. This article reviews some claims made about districts' impacts and provides more comprehensive and robust evidence of whether cultural districts tend to live up to the hype. In particular, demographic trends of neighbourhood in and near districts are compared before and after districts' formation. The results are mixed, like cities' experiences with districts. The findings point to consistent relationships in some cases (e.g., income and employment growth) and, importantly, the absence of relationships in others (e.g., gentrification). The analysis also highlights key challenges for future empirical research.

Neighborhood Diversity and the Rise of Artist Hotspots: Exploring the Creative Class Thesis through a Neighborhood Change Lens

“…Much work remains to be done to understand how diversity and artists influence perceptions of neighborhood character and how they further affect neighborhood revitalization (Noonan 2013). Research has shown that nonprofit organizations and amenities like coffee shops that are associated with artist concentration contribute to lower crime levels (Papachristos et al 2011;Sharkey et al 2017).…”

Avoiding the ‘SoHo Effect’ in Baltimore: Neighborhood Revitalization and Arts and Entertainment Districts

“…However, it is almost universally understood as a promotional tactic for the neighborhood rather than having any tangible benefits, such as a promised tax-break for homeowners or artists selling artwork (See McGough and Messino, 2010, for an assessment of the financial benefits of A&E Districts in Baltimore). This is not surprising, as much previous research has discussed the role of branding and themed environments in urban revitalization and consumer-driven placemaking (Zukin, 1995;Gottdiener, 1997;Scott, 2000;Evans, 2003;Currid, 2009;Noonan, 2013). One of the early organizers of Baltimore A&E Districts plainly told us:…”

The arts, Bohemian scenes, and income

“…Where the arts grow, findings suggest that in the US they generally improve housing values Noonan, 2013;Stern & Seifert, 2010;Woronkowicz, 2016) and income Noonan, 2013;Schuetz, 2014;Woronkowicz, 2016) in urban and nationwide contexts. In Canada, however, Silver and Miller (2013) find that arts relations to income depend both on the type of arts that grow and type and strength of the cultural scene.…”