Hey Ariana,

Great blog post! However, I disagree with your opinion that Times Square has gone through a revanchism because many of the choices made in the area by government agencies were motivated by economic desires; I think both a revanchism or rebirth of an area can be results of economic motivations. Rather, I view Times Square as an area that went through a rebirth through revanchist methods. If you look at the area’s history through the eyes of the government, Times Square was a place overrun by criminals, sex, and drugs; essentially, the government had “lost” their control over Times Square. I view the introduction of the Disney store as a revanchist attempt made to regain control over Times Square from the people the government saw as vagrants and criminals. In your post, you mention that instead of looking at why the people in the old Times Square were in the situations they were in and solving these issues first, the government resorted to transform the area by “getting rid of the businesses and shops that facilitated these individuals.” I assume you’re talking about the prostitutes, drug users and dealers, and various criminals? If so, I think this is an interesting take on things and this is why I believe the government used revanchist methods to “retake” the area and transform Times Square into an area they thought would better serve the City as a whole (remember that I mentioned that through the eyes of the government, I believe, they had viewed the area as a place that they “lost” to the vagrants and criminals you referred to). The consequences of introducing the Disney store, which, as you mentioned, stimulated other businesses to set up shop in the area and led to the transition into how we see Times Square today as a clean (as opposed to the drug-ridden “dirty” place) tourist area, is what I see as the rebirth of Times Square.

I found it your questions at the end really intriguing. Before this assignment, I always had the image of Times Square as this really flashy place which huge department stores and people dressed up as movie icons to score more cash. But, I think you’re right, Times Square might be in the beginning of another transformation (another rebirth perhaps?). Several Days After Christmas, Toys ‘R’ Us Closes in Times Square certainly makes me think so! Perhaps the businesses will start to transition into wealthier establishments that can afford to pay rent and then only wealthier tourists will start to visit the area. If this were to happen, I think Time Square could eventually develop into a place that’s segregated from the greater City in terms of the types of people you find visiting the area. This reminds me of the early years of Central Park: the park was established a free public area, yet only wealthier citizens could enjoy the park and while lower class citizens weren’t barred from the park, they certainly felt discouraged from visiting since they were so out of place in the park. So will Times Square eventually evolve to a place where these high-end businesses start to set up shop and cater to the upper class while the City’s lower-class population feels discouraged from visiting the area because it offers nothing for them?

Overall, I had a lot of fun reading your blog post! 🙂

-Noelia