ABSTRACT
When the DCUSA complex opened in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington, DC in 2008, District residents had one of their first “big box” retail opportunities anchored by Target. The three-story mall was the centerpiece of a 13-acre mixed-use redevelopment that would have been unheard of outside of downtown DC a decade before. Contrasted against previous large-scale redevelopments in Washington, DC-notably the urban renewal that destroyed African American neighborhoods in Southwest DC in the 1950s and the downtown development of Chinatown beginning in the late 1990s-elected officials, developers, and some new residents considered this development a win-win for neighborhood residents and the District government. Columbia Heights was considered an unsafe place for investment because of high rates of crime, gang violence, and poverty, and the District’s investment in the form of discounted land and infrastructure investment would spur massive redevelopment and change for the neighborhood. Residents would benefit from cleaner streets, increased amenities, reductions in crime, and improved city services.
