Truly visionary planners and policymakers often dream of a future they may never witness. So, they spend the bulk of their careers chipping away at that grander goal, hopefully securing victories along the way but also weathering tedious defeats. My hope for this issue’s theme, “The Long Road,” wasn’t to create pessimism among our fellow Hunter students about the slow-moving nature of progress, but to highlight how visionaries remain optimistic in the face of setbacks and challenges, unshakeable in their vision of a better future.
In the months since we started work on the issue, we’ve only seen the challenges for this generation intensify. Most of the transformative plans to fix housing, transportation, land use, or climate resiliency in this country are not on the agendas of either major political party. Still, it seems that re-electing a president intent on dismantling core functions of the government and dismissive of the causes of our deepest problems will, at best, be a waste of four precious years. Those who’ve worked for decades to change the way we commute and densify our neighborhoods to mitigate climate change could only look on in horror as Los Angeles faced historic wildfires. Right here in New York City, the ultimate implementation of congestion pricing in its less-ambitious form only came after a summer of heartbreak and fear that years of advocacy had all been squandered, a frustrating reminder of how vulnerable bold ideas are to run-of-the-mill politics. For those of us just entering our careers, we’d hope to step into this work energized, helpfully-naive to the many setbacks and challenges we’d face. I must admit how I’ve actually felt lately: already tired.
But reading the stories for this issue of the Urban Review has recharged me. Not only does it contain the stories of planners and activists undeterred by roadblocks, but the writers themselves show their defiant optimism through their work. We have two excellent interviews, one with Michael Eliason from Harry Krizmanich, and one with Jon Orcutt from Joe Kusters, which each delve into the fascinating careers of two forward-thinking planners. Serge del Grosso, Jr.’s op-ed argues eloquently in favor of restoring the final remnants of Buffalo’s public housing heyday; Joanna Moore offers an insightful look into the fight to ban single-use plastic in Cape Cod; and Jilly Edgar delves thoughtfully into the city’s effort to retrofit public housing. Our full-length features include Ivi Lewis’ carefully-crafted survey of the growing community land trust movement in NYC and the tactics members are using to democratize property; Emma McCauley recounts wonderfully the determined effort of activist Mama Joy to defend her Brooklyn home and neighbors in the face of redevelopment; and Kiron Roy’s thoroughly-reported piece on the Bronx activists who took on the Sheridan Expressway offers a great example of local power. Finally, the vibrant photo essay on NYC’s handball courts from Isabel Ozkan Jordan reminds us there’s always plenty of fun to be had here.
In my eyes, we achieved our goal for this issue. These pieces have been a balm for me in these surreal, pessimistic months. My peers’ work illuminates how true civil servants refuse to give up in the face of failure because they simply know no other way to be–they’re built like this. I’m happy to say that our Hunter community is filled with people built just the same, and this issue served as a fill-up for my optimism tank. I hope you’ll take the time to read “The Long Road” and feel the same way.
