Week 2 Reading Response

I see Oldenburg’s argument as more compelling because it gave me a new perspective on the components of a community model. He speaks of something referred to a “third place”, which is neither a home or work place where people in the community can go to. It is sort of the middle ground between all the different people that live together geographically and may have different cultural values and beliefs, but they are still about to come together on a social level. This spot is where residents are able to express themselves and show off their personalities without worrying about the outcome. The third place is a safe haven that is represented by the people that are considered regulars and create the atmosphere that lingers in this place. People from the same community have the opportunity to interact, whereas they wouldn’t have it anywhere else. I think an example of a third place can be a bar or park. A bar has a very social and friendly environment, and they have their regular customers that come in for a drink with their friends quite often, which may give them the feeling of a home away from home. A park gives people the opportunity to play organized team sports together or play with their pets and meet other pet owners. It is a neutral ground or leveler among the members of the neighborhood. Zukin and Benediktsson both talk about how small businesses are being jeopardized by various factors such as gentrification and large corporate businesses. I can attest to this with my own experience. A popular family owned deli near my high school, Brooklyn Technical High School, was shut down my junior year of high school. Turned out, the owners of the bodega could not afford to keep up with the rising property costs in the gentrified area of Fort Greene Park. As a result, they were forced to go out of business. This is not the first time I witnessed something like this occur to a neighborhood store. Unfortunately, it is hard for them to compete with larger chain corporations if the government is not regulating commercial rent prices.