On March 28, 2013, the Urban and Regional Policy Program of the German Marshall Fund of the United States hosted the event, “Policies and Strategies in Shrinking Cities: The Case of Youngstown, Ohio.”  This all-day event was the culmination of a two week urban planning studio led by the Technical University of Dortmund Germany, in conjunction with Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation (YNDC), to develop revitalization concepts for abandoned industrial properties along the Mahoning River.  The GMF event brought together over 60 local, regional, national, and international experts to share knowledge and exchange ideas on creative strategies for reimagining the space of shrinking cities. Participants also provided feedback on the planning studio’s revitalization concepts. 

Until the late 1950s Youngstown, Ohio was a thriving mill town, but has since suffered from decades of population and business loss. Currently, reuse of former industrial sites is a critical issue in Youngstown, Ohio and other cities in transition in the United States and Europe. 

As a result, Youngstown is an active participant in the Cities in Transition (CIT) Initiative organized by the GMF. The initiative focuses on building a sustained network of leading policymakers and practitioners in five older industrial U.S. cities. It is through YNDC’s participation in the CIT Initiative that a transatlantic connection with Dortmund was first established. As the two cities continued to collaborate, a concept evolved for a group of planning students from Dortmund to conduct a studio around revitalization strategies for abandoned industrial sites to help connect Youngstown back to the river and its industrial heritage. 

For the event, GMF organized a site visit and panel discussion, moderated by Emily Yates, Program Officer for GMF. Panel members included: Alan Mallach, a non-resident GMF Fellow and Brookings Fellow, Lavea Brachman, a non-resident GMF Fellow and Executive Director of the Greater Ohio Policy Center, Thorsten Wiechmann, professor at the School of Spatial Planning, Technical University Dortmund, and Ian Beniston, Deputy Director at Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation.  The panel agreed that cities must maximize their assets – in the case of Youngstown, the industrial heritage of the region – to champion revitalization and sustainable growth strategies.  Another area of agreement among the panelists was the belief that shrinking cities should adapt to their current state rather than ignore the shrinkage and pursue new growth.

To conclude the event, the Technical University of Dortmund students presented on the history and current state of the Ruhr Valley in Germany, a region that has faced similar challenges as Youngstown, and then presented their recommendations for each of the abandoned industrial sites in the city.  Their recommendations were insightful, creative, and forward thinking.  Some of the recommendations were simple, such as lighting up a smoke stack so that it can be seen from afar, and some were more intense, such as transforming an old warehouse into a recreation center complete with skateboard park, indoor basketball courts, and other sport facilities.  The presentations were perceived in a variety of ways, but overall, attendees were excited and inspired by the possibilities for Youngstown.

This experience is a wonderful example of the value of transatlantic peer learning. It clearly demonstrates how cities in both the US and Europe face similar challenges and can share innovative and impactful solutions to pressing urban challenges to create change in their communities.