This is architect / urban planner David Walker, and he wants what everyone seems to want: vibrant commercial corridors in Chicago's neighborhoods. In the WBEZ video, Walker takes us to a desolate stretch of 63rd Street in Woodlawn, where whole blocks of commercial buildings have been demolished, and compares it to Andersonville's bustling Clark Street corridor.
"One of the big differences between either South Shore and Woodlawn and places like Andersonville, you hate to talk about it, but there's this whole disinvestment that's happened in African American communities for hundreds of years. And I think the city has kind of a greater responsibility to help a lot of the African American communities that have had so much disinvestment for years."African American communities aren't the only ones where retail is slumping. Andersonville and a few other healthy retail strips have become the exception, while many commercial streets on Chicago's North and South sides are dotted with vacancies.
· Dear Chicago: Rebuild our historic commercial streets [WBEZ]
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