Infrastructure and community redevelopment decide who returns home, who is displaced, and what progress looks like.
Introduction
Infrastructure and community redevelopment are not neutral. They show who we protect, who we displace, and what we believe progress looks like. Mid-century highways cut through thriving districts. Clearance projects erased homes and businesses. Today’s spending can either repeat that pattern or repair it with intent.
From Renewal to Removal
In the mid-20th century, “urban renewal” was sold as progress. Under the Housing Act of 1949, cities drew federal funds to clear “blight” and redevelop land. In practice, bulldozers targeted Black and low-income neighborhoods. Highways, civic centers, and luxury projects replaced homes, churches, and small firms. The pattern repeated nationwide, and the loss compounded across generations.
By 1970, federal programs had displaced more than a million people. Families lost equity and the local networks that sustained them. Property values rose elsewhere. Wealth moved out. Trust collapsed.
Note: Historical program data is available through HUD User.
Modern Spending, Old Logic
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, CHIPS and Science Act, and climate commitments created a new wave of funding. The core question remains. Who benefits first and who carries the cost. Broadband corridors, transit upgrades, and bridge repairs promise “access,” but access without ownership leads to dependence.
Equity requires different metrics. Measure households protected from displacement, small contractors sustained, apprentices trained, and local firms awarded prime and subprime contracts. Public dashboards should track contract flows and job creation by ZIP code.
Note: See the Brookings Institution for implementation and equity tracking across IIJA and CHIPS.
Designing for Return, Not Removal
Design is intention made visible. Repair demands that projects acknowledge past harm and build with the people who live there now.
- Reparative design: Require pre-award impact statements that quantify likely displacement and outline mitigation.
- Ownership in contracting: Set percentage allocations for local and minority-owned firms. Publish quarterly award data.
- Reconnection projects: Scale efforts like the U.S. DOT Reconnecting Communities program to bridge highway divides.
- Workforce pipelines: Tie awards to apprenticeship seats and credential completions for residents within the impact area.
Note: Program details at U.S. DOT Reconnecting Communities.
Infrastructure and Community Redevelopment in Practice
The rebuild works when national resources meet local frameworks that keep value circulating. Pair public dollars with neighborhood ownership models. Use land trusts, co-op housing, and local credit unions to anchor people in place while work is underway. Bring small contractors onto teams early so design choices reflect lived reality.
For a field manual on community structure and ownership, see Building Forward: A Playbook for Community Empowerment. Treat Discipline Before Dollars as the operating rule for public and private partners. Order first, then scale.
What Comes Next in Infrastructure and Community Redevelopment
The next decade of federal spending will shape how people move, connect, and earn. We are not just building bridges. We are building the political, financial, and moral scaffolding for the next century. If design once removed people, it can now bring them home. That means measuring success by inclusion, not just completion.
Structure is policy. Policy is design. Done well, design becomes justice made visible.
The Groundwork
Map the harm. Publish the metrics. Share the contracts. Train the neighbors. Protect the households. That is how infrastructure and community redevelopment rebuild trust and opportunity.
Read next: Building Forward: A Playbook for Community Empowerment