Vernon Sawyer oral history interview, 2004 April 19

Vernon Sawyer recounts his experiences as the executive director of the Charlotte Redevelopment Commission, which was responsible for Charlotte, North Carolina's urban renewal program in the 1960s and 1970s. Mr. Sawyer talks in detail about urban renewal in Charlotte's Brooklyn neighborhood, including selecting Brooklyn first for urban renewal, poor housing conditions, Avery Hood, a social worker responsible for helping to relocate Brooklyn residents, and the advantage of having an African American relocation director, Edward Waddell. He also discusses working as a city and regional planner in Norfolk, Virginia prior to moving to Charlotte, integration in neighborhoods and offices, negative public sentiment towards urban renewal, and facing multiple lawsuits filed by the Legal Aid Society.