On AuthentiCITY
Are cities facing an identity crisis?
Call me dramatic, but New York City is losing its authentiCITY. Actually, I think many of our cities are facing a real identity crisis. A loss of character. A struggle to maintain community spaces and places of real, authentic culture. This has been on my mind for maybe 6-7 months or so now.
I think what first sparked this realization for me was when I had to move apartments last summer. When I first moved to New York, I was lucky to live in a neighborhood that, relative to the rest of the city, was known for still having a distinct character. That was the Upper West Side.
As I browsed neighborhoods to move to on StreetEasy, I was excited to make my short list and explore new spots around the city. As I went to narrow things down (primarily based on what was in my budget, but also based on vibes/livability/feel), it was difficult, and not for the reasons you’d assume.
Everywhere felt the same.
If it wasn’t for being overpriced (which let’s be real, everywhere is), then what it had to offer still wasn’t that much different from the next neighborhood over. There are the same Sweetgreen and Starbucks franchises everywhere. Local businesses, people, and community organizations that once defined a particular neighborhood have long been gone, or their voices have become increasingly drowned out by corporations. The modern designs and construction of new residential buildings all look and feel the same. The parks, streets, building facades, and even privately-owned public spaces have almost become too design-regulated and standardized to the point where they void neighborhood space of any real sense of creativity that is original or specific to the site.
The current-day realities on the ground feel very different from how these neighborhoods have historically been perceived on paper, in film, and through lore.
Take, for instance, Greenwich Village. It doesn’t feel as authentic and culturally rich anymore compared to how it was portrayed in the 1960s-set A Complete Unknown, nor like how it was described in 1961’s The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Maybe the infamous New York City “neighborhood” has become overly romanticized in modern culture, causing us to feel this lack today. Maybe this is just seasonal depression speaking. Maybe everything will feel wonderfully unique with spring blossoms and summer heat. Honestly, I have no clue! But I bet if I re-read some of Jane Jacobs’ book, I could get an inkling that this loss of authenticity (as a result of many bigger socio-economic factors) was foreshadowed and is, indeed, real.
City character is a difficult thing to give form to. You can’t fake authenticity, or else a city ends up feeling like Disney. It is not easy to cultivate authenticity in a city or space. But it is an even easier thing to stand by and watch it erode from somewhere that you love.
This dilemma didn’t happen overnight, and it won’t be corrected overnight either. It most definitely won’t be solved in this scribbled-down blog post. I don’t have any answers yet, but I do have my curiosity. The hope and optimism that I see here is in the fact that I AM craving originality, creativity, and authenticity! And I know that I am not alone in craving this feeling from our cities, spaces, and places! The question is: what will we do or design as a result of that desire?
