An Urban Renewal Project - Research Paper Example

These steps are taken in order to use privately-owned property for development projects such as urban renewal project (Grogon and Proscio, 2001). The process of urban renewal is seen in both positive and negative ways by various people. To most of people, it acts as a symbol of economic development and positive reforms and for some it acts as a means of establishing control. It is a good way of recreating communities that exist and make them seem better but at the cost of demolishing certain neighborhoods.

However, with the passage of time a change has occurred in the way people think about urban renewal projects which is seen now as more oriented toward investment and renovation and less toward destruction (Jones, 2004). The paper will highlight the local project at Los Angeles that had been named as Bunker Hill project and will discuss the circumstances that led to this decision of accomplishing an urban renewal project in Los Angeles. The role of power elite, pluralism, mobility, economic competition and government regime has also been discussed in the paper throughout.

Bunker Hill is the Los Angeles’ oldest plan of redevelopment that spreads over the area of 133 acres. The project adopted in 1959 by the city council of Los Angeles got transformed into a project of area redevelopment in 1968. The project area considered to be bounded by Hill Street (east), First Street (north), Fifth Street (south) and Harbour Freeway (west) (Dawson, 2008). The area had been relocated to include twenty-five developmental sites of large mass. The developmental plan also included the construction of a new street system in order to control the steepness of hill and to connect the steep area with nearby flatlands.

The four sites out of the twenty-five major developmental sites were under the ownership of CRA/LA whereas two were owned by County. The project of Bunker Hill had been the result of continuous struggle against the lawsuits by City Council that won its case in favor of urban renewal project in 1964. The funds raised for the completion of project were initially $33 million and few complaints were submitted against the plan. However, in 1968 the project was renamed as Bunker Hill Redevelopment project which previously was known as urban renewal project (Fante, 2002).

It is worth-mentioning that the area had been remained unattended for the period from 1800’s to 1920’ due to the lack of water system and other services that had not reached that place at the time. The Bunker Hill due to the steep topography had been the difficult project to accomplish and it was the necessary to reconstruct it in order to provide room for neighborhoods that were becoming overcrowded (Fante, 2002). The Great Depression had also contributed in the negligence of this hilly area in terms of renovating the site.

Therefore, in 1940’s it was almost impossible to think of reconstructing the area and investing a lot of money in doing so at the time when the country was facing economic crisis and crime acts at the peak. In the past the site had been the place of Victorian mansions which now became urban decay. Extensive surveys and researches were conducted to measure the physical, economic and social impacts. The results of the surveys identified the