Gentrification

The last post had some links to other blog posts about gentrification. Gentrification is the moving-in of more "affluent people" into an "low-class area." This raises the income of the neighborhood which increases the property values and rent. Since this area was originally low-class, the increasing rent forces the original inhabitants to move out because they can no longer afford to stay there.

With the movement of affluent people into this area, the area itself is changed. Businesses move in, while mom and pop businesses shut down. It's actually a fairly horrible thing. As I've heard from some of the posts, those who move in are not concerned with the original inhabitants. They are more concerned with their cafes with wireless internet than meeting their neighbors. They seem also to only care about their property value, which of course rises with the influx of more of their kind.

My neighborhood is experiencing what can only be described as a reverse gentrification. There is currently a plan to create a townhouse complex near here which would be for low-income families. This would drop the property values of my neighborhood. There is a campaign to stop their construction headed up by the Home Owner's Association. I oppose this campaign, and support the building of this low-income housing. There's no reason why it should be opposed. Simply because a greedy home owner wants to keep his property values up? Why should we forsake the affordable housing and great education of the less fortunate to protect the greed of people who probably have too much anyway?