The consultant that prepared the blight study (and the urban renewal plan itself), finds that the area is “decadent” because of substandard public infrastructure, “irregular lot sizes,” the presence of vacant lots that lack “curb appeal,” and old buildings—fully 50 percent of the buildings are over 100 years old. Moreover, there is an appalling “diversity of ownership” among the thousands of private properties, some of which are small and, therefore, a serious “constraint to attracting new private development.” Ross, John. Reason.com 7 November 2012.
