Saturday, May 21, 2016

New Young's Town: Part 3: Corridors of Illusions

 Connecting New Young's Town to the suburban areas are streets,  artifacts, left from the Dead City of Youngstown. They are used as secondary or tertiary routes.  Market Street for example, is perhaps the longest, being many miles in length and traversing the Wildlands. Currently, the majority of the buildings along it are being claimed by nature or the voracious demolition companies. Travel merely one block to either side of market for anywhere on its entire length and there is nothing but fields and woodlots with the occasional fragment of a neighborhood.
 At the point where these corridors meet the suburban areas one will find neighborhoods from the Dead City still intact, almost like illusions. The houses are neat and tidy, the streets are clean and maintained, there is police protection and all seems right with the world. There is a sense that the American Dream is still alive, right here where we are standing. We feel the pressures and threats around us, but we know we can withstand them. After emerging from the Wildlands, this area is a relief. This is the mood of the neighborhood. We see this environment particularly where Market Street meets Boardman boarder.
 Should a person only visit these neighborhoods, they would have   the impression that the dead city of Youngstown is still alive and well. The fact of the matter is that these border communities are totally dependent for their survival on the suburban economies, and without the regular infusion of resources, they would collapse and be taken by Ruralization.

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