The City’s Effect on the Environment and Psychology

The city is a complex and stratified place that is home to many people and ideas. The exchange of ideas and goods in the city is a notion that has gone back as far as the 8th century B.C. in the Western world. Today, the city has become a more expansive force, cutting into the countryside and destroying a lot of natural resources along the way. The limits of the urban landscape are now much less finite and are growing daily. This expansion has allowed for the stratification of the city into different areas of focus: industry, market, business, habitation and ethnic enclave. With these different foci come the inevitable struggles within local government as well as in extralegal disputes. This also occurs because of different social and cultural ideas that filter experiences in a different matter. Overall, the city is a hodge podge of struggling visions and characters that must learn to live together or run the risk of stalling societal progress.

This is not to say that cities alone determine the progress of society; rather, cities are key forces in what happens throughout a certain region or sub region. We can see it in disputes over new businesses or renovating arenas. These meetings places bring in those on the outer cusp of the city toward the center and downtown region of the city. This is a rare event considering that many suburbanites dare not venture into the downtown region of their city, it is a dark, dank, ugly place in their eyes. They are not aware, however, that they played a major role in the destruction of the city. The White Flight from cities to suburbs in the 1950s left most urban areas reeling as formulaic housing and cookie cutter street design allowed for a safer and cleaner living space during the early Cold War era. The city, however, workers to contribute to their tax base and businesses to bring in major finances but also lost the spirit that makes the city a great place to congregate. Needless to say, many downtown areas nearly perished under the weight of fewer consumers and inhabitants. Recently, the push has been to improve the downtown area to attract more commerce and implement for efficient use of space. Cleveland improved their lakefront area over the last decade by cleaning up streets, renovating abandoned buildings, and helping bring in the Quicken Loans Arena (Cleveland Cavaliers) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This revitalization of the city gives suburbanites and those who fled the city epicenter to come back and bring their energy with them.

The different views of the city are based on some myth, some cultural differences, and some experience. The myth is that cities are not pleasant places to be; the suburb and the outskirts of the city are the places to be. This myth has perpetuated since the 1950s so it is difficult to change this momentum. However, with the revitalization projects there is hope in defeating the myth and bringing back life to the city.

Cultural differences contribute to many conflicts and problems in the city. Enclaves exist within the city, places where certain populations with similar backgrounds live and thrive. However, some parts of these particular groups may be vexing or offensive to the homogenous population of the suburbs or another cultural enclave. Our nation in particular has been built on the influx of immigrants from foreign lands, so this problem is deep rooted in our history. But the question should be is it really a problem if two sides are mired in cultural tension? Who are we to judge, besides public safety issues, what a particular culture does within its own property? This land is their land as well; it goes right along with free speech and free practice of religion, and idea that is as important as the immigration of people to this land five centuries ago.

The city is also becoming a problem upon our environment. Urban sprawl, the movement of the city outward into grasslands and valleys, is a larger scale problem. If we do not set limits to urban expansion, we will destroy plant life and forests that help us maintain homeostasis. The smog and pollution caused by automobiles on long stretches of roadway causes ill effects on human health, thus effecting our feelings and senses. Some preliminary sprawl control is in effect in areas like Portland, OR, and Baltimore, MD. These policies, however, are not strong enough as there is not enough sentiment for land use management as a public good instead of a result of private landownership. Until we see the benefits of sprawl control and a more concentrated urban landscape, we will see our environment degenerate further and green spaces will be run over by mini-malls and luxury condominiums. The city needs to return as the place of great energy and excitement in the 21st century or suffer the consequence of stagnation in the suburbs, dirtier air, and a problem of how to develop already over developed land.