The 1993 winners exemplify situations where residents and leaders came together to turn around neighborhoods devastated by neglect, disinvestment, mismanagement and physical destruction.
Rebuilding Communities: the 1993 Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence includes detailed case studies and lessons learned about the winning projects including:
- Harbor Point in Boston, Massachusetts
Transformation of a low-income housing project into a diverse community
- New Community Corporation in Newark, New Jersey
A community development corporation providing affordable housing and social services
- Betts-Longworth Historic District in Cincinnati, Ohio
A preservation-based redevelopment initiative to revitalize a historic downtown district
- Beyond Homelessness in San Francisco, California
A series of projects providing housing and services for the homeless
- Park at Post Office Square in Boston, Massachusetts
Replacement of downtown parking garage with a public park and underground parking
Lessons Learned themes include:
- A Comprehensive Approach: Providing Services, Not just Buildings
- Addressing Critical Urban Problems
- Doing the Impossible: Persistence in the Face of Overwhelming Odds
- Balancing Leadership and Participation
- Effective, On-going Management
- The Role of Technical Expertise
- Leveraging Scarce Resources through Imaginative Use of Public and Private Programs
- Achieving Quality in Urban Places