Strategic demolition for shrinking and shrunken cities: A case study from Buffalo, NY, USA

Shrinking cities are older urban settlements that played prominent roles in the industrial economies of developed nations, but have experienced substantial depopulation, economic contraction and undesirable physical change since at least the middle of the 20th century. To counter the problems that necessarily accompany massive depopulation, shrinking cities have aggressively used structural demolition as a right-sizing strategy. Right-sizing is both a policy objective and the set of strategies used to restructure the built environment of a shrinking city to meet its current needs, by aligning the supply of community assets (eg infrastructure, housing, services) with current and future demand. In practice, it appears that many shrinking cities equate right-sizing exclusively with large-scale demolition. The result is that demolition is implemented in a standalone fashion, which fails to meaningfully stem the tides of shrinkage and vacancy. This paper draws on a framework of strategic demolition for shrinking cities to analyse a well-publicised, ‘signature’ demolition programme in Buffalo, NY, USA. The critical analysis shows that Buffalo failed to take recommended actions that were within its reach, which likely contributed to perceptions that its signature programme was unsuccessful. The case study has several implications for planning and policy in shrinking cities.