Author: Latia Vergara

Latia Vergara
LIB – 2205 ID
March 29,2020

Gowanus Canal Article Reflection

My overall opinion of the Gowanus Canal is that it has the potential to be great for residential living and new businesses as well. The organizations that plan to redevelop the canal and its surrounding areas must take their time with this project and consistently work on it until it is complete. In the past, the city, organizations, and developers have started work on the canal but backed out before the work was complete. Based on the 3 articles there are different opinions of what the capabilities of the canal are. Many believe that it can not be redeveloped into a predominately residential neighborhood. Due to the years of dumping and neglect, some believe it has reached its full potential thus far. Others believe it’s not worth the money it will take to redevelop the Gowanus Canal and the surrounding neighborhood. The technology and manpower it would take would be more expensive and the expenses would exceed the value of the land. History has shown that the Gowanus canal has many capabilities but it can not be developed in the same way that the Dumbo project was put together. It may have the potential to become something beautiful. The canal does not have the same resources around it that the Dumbo project has. The Gowanus can become residential housing but it doesn’t have the potential to be a waterfront community.

In the movies “Citizen Jane” and “Finding Brooklyn”  their was a lot of talk of the architect/real estate developer Robert Moses and how his planes were ruining communities and neighborhoods with his planes of gentrification of neighborhoods. Mr  Moses did not consider  the people he was displacing. He did not care about the minorities and the underprivileged that were being affected by his plans.Jane Jacobs was a Journalist/Civic Activist for these people. She saw how gentrification was ruining neighborhoods and she knew that the developers were only concerned with making money not making communities/ neighborhoods better. Mr Moses philosophy was if we wanted to make things better we had to cut out the cancers of these places, so his plan was to start over, tear it down and rebuild. He was an originator of the idea to create housing projects. The projects isolated the poor from the rest of society which Ms Jacob was total against that idea. Jacobs believed that diversity builds cities. She believed that networking between classes and races is what builds communities.While Moses had an agenda to eliminate the lower class. Jacobs understood that people and activity build a city/neighborhood.Jane Jacobs was a great strategist when it came to civic action, Washington Square Roadway was Mr Moses first defeat by Ms Jacobs. Mr Moses headed the Urban Development project in New York among other places. His plans were to was to sterilize the city and create a different kind of ghetto. Urban development meant Negro removal to developers like Moses. Those project were developed all across the United States and abroad. They were all failures and are being demolished now all across the United States. All to make developers and politicians rich. Neighborhoods in my city are being affected by gentrification now and the same issues Ms Jacobs was facing back then my neighborhood is facing now because of the projects going up in dumbo and Williamsburg. High rise condominium and lofts are surrounding my neighborhood which is causing basic household items in my neighborhood stores to even go up making it hard to afford even groceries.

How would you rate your level of experience doing research in college? I would say I have a lot of experience in research. I have done research in High School as well as in College for general and advanced research courses.

What is your expectation for this class supporting your classes in your major? I expect that this class will heighten my geographical knowledge and teach me more about different cultures. This class supports my major because the Hospitality Management industry will expose me to all cultures, languages, and places.