HINTERLAND
In 1964, New York City slated 7 areas for “renewal,” a euphemism for what had previously been called “slum clearance.” Among the 7 was a 308 acre tract of deteriorating homes and bungalows in Arverne, Queens. The beachside housing had been originally built for seasonal use, part of The Rockaways, a once vibrant summer colony along the Atlantic Ocean. Following the area’s decline as a vacation resort, the city warehoused low income families in this substandard housing, located on the fringes of the city where jobs, groceries, transportation, and services were largely unavailable. In 1968 the Arverne Urban Renewal Area (AURA) was officially declared, the city acquired the housing by condemnation and eminent domain and razed the entire neighborhood.
Since then, only small amounts of affordable housing were rebuilt and numerous proposals for large scale redevelopment fell through, but in 2002 the Arverne by the Sea subdivision began construction, eventually occupying the AURA’s western half with market rate housing. The oceanfront acreage from Beach 56th Place to Beach 32nd Street still remained entirely unbuilt, the result of years of bureaucratic inertia, numerous fiscal crises, racist resistance to affordable housing, the enormous financial undertaking of developing the 116 acre site, the impacts of Superstorm Sandy, and conflict between local groups and officials. In the intervening 53 years, the landscape grew wild, offering astonishing beauty and life, amidst ghosts of the past, fractured streets, and broken promises.
These photographs were made during the final 13 months of the Arverne Urban Renewal Area, as it existed in limbo between the past and the future. Now named Arverne East, the site is officially approved for development, even as key questions about equity and resilience go unanswered. Fences cordon off the landscape and construction teams once again rip into blocks, removing the weeds, flowers, and trees that had covered where homes once stood.
Selections from Hinterland, 2020-2021, Arverne, Queens, NYC.
Since then, only small amounts of affordable housing were rebuilt and numerous proposals for large scale redevelopment fell through, but in 2002 the Arverne by the Sea subdivision began construction, eventually occupying the AURA’s western half with market rate housing. The oceanfront acreage from Beach 56th Place to Beach 32nd Street still remained entirely unbuilt, the result of years of bureaucratic inertia, numerous fiscal crises, racist resistance to affordable housing, the enormous financial undertaking of developing the 116 acre site, the impacts of Superstorm Sandy, and conflict between local groups and officials. In the intervening 53 years, the landscape grew wild, offering astonishing beauty and life, amidst ghosts of the past, fractured streets, and broken promises.
These photographs were made during the final 13 months of the Arverne Urban Renewal Area, as it existed in limbo between the past and the future. Now named Arverne East, the site is officially approved for development, even as key questions about equity and resilience go unanswered. Fences cordon off the landscape and construction teams once again rip into blocks, removing the weeds, flowers, and trees that had covered where homes once stood.
Selections from Hinterland, 2020-2021, Arverne, Queens, NYC.