| Description |
1 online resource (xiv, 314 pages) : illustrations, maps |
| Contents |
Columbia Point, 1951-1962 -- Breaking Ground at the Calf Pasture -- The Promise of Public Housing -- Ignoring the Warnings -- Moving In: A Tale of Two Families -- Building a New Community -- The Mothers Club -- Children of the Point: I -- Columbia Point in the Spotlight -- Columbia Point, 1962-1978 -- "Island of Isolation" -- The Downhill Slide -- Housing of Last Resort -- Children of the Point: II -- Planning for Columbia Point -- Moving Out and Moving In -- The News from Columbia Point -- Columbia Point, 1978-1987 -- Unlikely Partners -- Seeing Is Believing -- The Court Takes Over -- Receivership -- Shotgun Marriage -- Designing the New Community -- The Wrecking Ball -- Harbor Point, 1988-2000 -- The Blitz -- Goodboy -- Renting and Recession -- Moving into Harbor Point -- Running the New Community -- Lessons from Harbor Point |
| Summary |
When Boston's Columbia Point housing project was built in the early 1950s on the isolated edge of Dorchester Bay, it was hailed as a noble government experiment to provide temporary housing for working-class families who had fallen on hard times. By the mid-1970s, the model community had disintegrated and become a symbol of failure, decay, crime, and danger. Today, Columbia Point has been redeveloped as Harbor Point, a privately owned and managed mixed-income, racially integrated complex that stands handsomely alongside its institutional neighbors, the John F. Kennedy Library, the Massachusetts Archives, and the University of Massachusetts at Boston. A Decent Place to Live chronicles the rise, fall, and rebirth of Columbia Point through the voices of those who struggled to make a life there and who battled to rebuild their community. A fascinating story of people, conflict, continuity, and change, the work captures the rich yet troubled heritage of Columbia Point and celebrates the aspirations and tenacity of its residents. It reclaims a neglected piece of Boston's history and offers important lessons for urban planners and policy makers nationwide. Originally published by Northeastern University Press in 2000. With a new foreword by Karilyn Crockett |
| Notes |
Reprint of 2000 edition with new foreword |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 301-307) and index |
| Notes |
Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed May 21, 2019) |
| Subject |
Urban renewal -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- History -- Case studies
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City planning -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- History -- Case studies
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Public housing -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- History -- Case studies
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Housing policy -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- History -- Case studies
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City planning.
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Housing policy.
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Public housing.
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Urban renewal.
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Massachusetts -- Boston.
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| Genre/Form |
Case studies.
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History.
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| Form |
Electronic book
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| Author |
Crockett, Karilyn, writer of foreword
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| ISBN |
9781555538835 |
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1555538835 |
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