The literature suggests that neighborhoods with organized criminal networks would have lower crime rates than other neighborhoods or communities, because of the social control their organization exerts on residents and visitors. The strictly organized Italian-American Mafia seems to have characteristics that would translate throughout the neighborhood: People will not participate in overt illegal behaviors because they do not know who is watching, and the fear of what the Mafia might do keeps residents and visitors to the neighborhood relatively well-behaved. Using crime statistics from the NYPD and census data for neighborhood characteristics, four linear regressions were calculated. The results indicate that low socioeconomic status is the main factor explaining neighborhood crime rate variations in New York City. The percent of the population under 18 and density were also listed as influential factors for some variables. The percent of foreign-born Italians was noted as significant in the correlation models, though it is not yet clear what this might truly indicate. The proxy variable for Mafia presence was not significant, and this can either be due to inaccuracies of the measurement of the variable or a true decrease in the influence of Mafia presence after the string of RICO arrests in the 1980s and 1990s. The results imply that Mafia presence does not influence neighborhood social control, but they do reinforce social disorganization theory. The foundation of this theory is neighborhood stability; the more unstable a neighborhood is, the more susceptible the neighborhood is to crime and dysfunction. Factors like low socioeconomic status and density influence neighborhood stability. Future research should attempt to have more accurate representations of Mafia presence and neighborhood characteristics.

This master’s thesis identifies the potential impacts of planning policies and key stakeholder groups on Red Hook, Brooklyn given current development trends and the neighborhood changes such as gentrification. The premise of this thesis is that through understanding the catalysts and impacts of social and economic change in similar neighborhoods, together with the analysis of current zoning, planning policies, and neighborhood culture and demographics in Red Hook, it is possible to identify how future changes may generate positive outcomes for the neighborhood. A review of planning literature provides a perspective on the disinvestment to reinvestment process seen in many New York City neighborhoods during the second half of the 20th century. The case study research method relying primarily on qualitative data is applied to gain a contextual analysis of the complex urban planning issues in Red Hook. A study of the planning and development impacts on three waterfront neighborhoods in New York City – Battery Park City, the Lower East Side, and Williamsburg – reveals the catalysts of neighborhood change in those neighborhoods and suggests the potential socio-economic impacts of future redevelopment in Red Hook.

Cities are co-constructed places shaped by interlocking systems of oppression. The cultural practices, socioeconomic systems, and bodily experiences born out of oppressive systems impact not only how cities are designed, but how people interact with the space. This dissertation examines how embodied experiences (habits, narratives, behaviors) of neighborhood change in Buffalo, New York affect residents’ sense of belonging. Drawing from scholarship on embodiment and place attachment this study examines how the urban form and personal identities inform a person’s sense of belonging. Participants (n=6) were asked to participate in five phases: 1) a life history interview; 2) a semi-structured interview; 3) the collection of audio-visual materials, and 4) a walking tour. Findings suggest embodied experiences of neighborhood change inform participants sense of belonging. Race and gender resulted in differing interactions with people and place. This study adds to existing literature on belonging by offering an understanding into how white residents experience neighborhood change, which is rarely attended to in the literature. This study has the potential to inform future interdisciplinary research as well as municipal efforts to engage residents in community development and urban policy design. / 2025-05-15T00:00:00Z

In the context of negative consequences following an economic growth paradigm, in the urban sphere, such as uneven urban development, marginalization, gentrification and austerity measures, the present study directs the focus towards the spaces of civic promise. These spaces have the potential to challenge the commoditized and consumerist urban practices and imagine alternative futures. The present paper applies an infrastructural approach to neighborhood art spaces with the purpose of identifying and understanding urban solidarity. Urban solidarity is conceptualized as civic sociality that negotiates difference. To pursue this line of inquiry, the thesis analyzes practices, relations, encounters and socialities that are allowed at Konsthall C, a neighborhood art space located in Hökarängen, a southern suburb of Stockholm, Sweden. The three research questions that guide the thesis are discussing the qualities of the art space, the civic sociality and how it negotiates difference and the dynamics between the qualities of the spaces and the civic social relations manifested in the space. These dynamics reveal that there is not a simple straightforward relationship between the two. Moreover, the importance of the background is reiterated for these types of spaces. Besides this, a nuanced perspective on the types of civic sociality and how it works towards negotiating differences is highlighted.

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