Historical Overview of CRA

Before creating the CRA, the City of Cambridge partook in the federal "Slum Clearance and Urban Renewal Program" by developing an inventory of possible urban renewal areas. The list of sites and properties was required as part of the Urban Renewal program, which was approved in 1949 by Congress to eliminate slums and 'blight' areas.

 In June 1955, the Cambridge City Council passed an order stating a need for a Redevelopment Authority. In October of that year, the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority (CRA) was officially organized and established, and five people were appointed to oversee the organization.

The newly established CRA took over the urban renewal projects in 1955 and worked with a private consultant to identify the needs of the areas. The initial target areas identified by the Planning Board were:

Summary of Urban Renewal Projects in Cambridge

At the onset of the CRA's work, the area of focus was the five communities identified as part of the urban renewal program by the City of Cambridge. Projects were developed in all the areas except for Cambridgeport and Riverside, which were halted due to the proposed inner belt, interstate highway. Donnelly Field project was also paused due to the highway proposal as well as community opposition to the project. However, the project resumed after two years but was known as the Wellington-Harrington project.

US Census Data Overview

It is essential to understand the characteristics of residents in and surrounding the Urban Renewal project areas. The US Census provides data on the population, racial composition, family median income, and housing tenure characteristics by Census Tracts and city-wide. The information allows for analysis of the community before the Urban Renewal projects in 1950 and 1960 and after 1970 to 2010. The goal of this examination is to show the project's impact on the immediate community, as compared to the rest of the city. 

Note: Census racial data collection in 1950 and 1960 only identified 'White' and 'Non-White.'