Utica, NY was once the original Sin city, a.k.a. Handshake city and is now known as the city that God forgot. It once held a choke hold on transportation with the Erie Canal and Railroads both running through the city and being a guaranteed place you had to go through as the U.S. moved west. At one point the heads of both the Democratic and Republican parties lived in Utica at the same time. It used to be a giant in the textile industry. But now it is a city looking to be reborn after the industrial revolution ended. The city has never had a population over 70,000. Yet it is one of the most densely diverse cities I have ever experienced. The Public high school speaks over 40 languages, the architecture is all over the place, and it is home to 17,000 refugees. The city is a powder keg of potential.
I moved to Utica in 2018. I've interacted most with the city through two non-profit organizations it houses. I volunteer with The Landmark Society of Greater Utica and Rebuilding Central New York. With the Landmark Society I have learned a lot about the city's rich history, its beautiful historic architecture, and the battle within the city to preserve and to start anew. With RCNY I have learned about the desperate help so many need to rebuild the central New York area and the many other non-profits trying to address many of Utica's problems. The city faces poverty, homelessness, and building degradation. The city has made some recent developments in an effort to economically grow. The city destroyed a block of historic buildings to build a new hospital in the center of downtown and added a large ice skating complex onto its historic stadium. I think both projects will bring some needed jobs and serve the greater Utica area bringing in more business to the city, but at the cost of its rich history and priceless architecture. I also had the opportunity to attend a planning board meeting where they approved a gas station convenience store being placed in a historic district. Sadly the trend is to disregard valuable history for brand new buildings to boost the economy in the short term, but in the long run if the city continues down this path I think it will regret losing its identity in plain modern buildings.
I am personally interested in working with the non-profits within the city to renovate and preserve its beautiful neighborhoods and buildings with local communities. I think transportation in the city can be completely transformed as well. I have never seen its streets congested and I think the city could easily be transformed into a bi-cycle friendly city. I have always looked at empty buildings as an opportunity and Utica has a lot of empty buildings. Utica has the same problems and advantages of a major city, but is small enough to actually be manageable.
The city is where cultures blend, problems are solved, and progress is made. Utica serves as the convening location for the surrounding rural populations. It’s the local area’s memory bank and central information hub. The county's historical center, largest library, and major colleges are all in the city. Utica is the main source of entertainment for the area with the theater, the museums, and events. Even though the city has been stagnant for a while it’s still an important hub for the area. I have faith that Utica will rise in prominence again, reborn to better serve the communities it houses in our modern times. It can become a beacon of innovation blending tradition and history into modern functions, a small-scale road map for other recovering industrial cities across America to follow.
Work Cited:
Downtown Utica, New York
Denis Tangney Jr
2023