In probably every town or city you find a part called the “posh housing area” and another part thought of as segregated or exposed.  These descriptions may very well reflect the actual composition of residents with regard to socio-economic factors, but may as well be the result of stories that build on and reinforce a place’s reputation. In this paper we discuss storytelling, usually used in marketing of products or destinations, in this case used as a tool for changing the image of a place on the decline. The paper builds on an ongoing project in Borlänge, a mid-sized Swedish town, where the present development in a mass-housing area from the 1980s with approximately 1 900 inhabitants is studied.  With its small-scale structure, surrounded by green areas, Jakobsgårdarna was considered as a top-modern living area in the 1980s, situated within walking distance to service and jobs. Today the public housing company is planning a renewal program to stop an observed negative development with a high turnover of tenants, and with a large share of unemployed persons and immigrants.  The question is whether this kind of renewal program is enough to change the image of the area, and if storytelling is a appropriate method. The paper takes its theoretical point of departure in the concepts of place and place image. The empirical part consists of an interview study with inhabitants in Borlänge and the use of mental maps. A tentative conclusion is that a long term physical and social renewal program may constitute a foundation for new image and that it is important to take into consideration the different parts and stages in the process of building an image of a place.