Forum explores management of neighborhood gratification

That’s the message from participants in the Urban Land Institute’s recent Charles H. Shaw Forum on Urban Community Issues.

According to an Oct. 2 ULI news release, participants agreed that urban revitalization happening in cities across the United States has sparked neighborhood gentrification with mixed results.

On one hand, there is a positive economic impact as the result of migration of new, affluent residents and upscale retailers catering to that group. There is, however, a negative social impact that results from the displacement of existing residents in these neighborhoods – who tend to be less affluent – and the displacement of businesses that serve them.

While the revitalization trend has attracted much-needed private investment in American cities, participants said that makeovers have, in some cases, ignored the heritage of existing neighborhoods, ultimately causing cities to lose part of their unique identities.

“We need to find more ways to preserve the cultural authenticity of a neighborhood that is undergoing gentrification,” said James Carr, senior vice president of the Fannie Mae Foundation in Washington, D.C., in the release.

Forum participants noted that the gentrification occurring in U.S. cities is a reflection of changes in the national economy. During the past 15 years, they said, high-tech jobs have largely replaced factory jobs, leaving many in the blue-collar, less-educated work force unable to make the transformation, forcing them to juggle two or three low-paying jobs not close to where they live.

As a result, while many cities have successfully reinvented their economies, the economic boost has benefited the upper-income class to the detriment of mainstream and lower-level workers. “This is a macro-economy issue, not a housing issue,” Carr said. “Wages are not rising at the low end … the wage increases at the high end are skewing the market in a way that does not reflect the income spectrum.”

Big-city example

Hipolito Roldan, president of the Hispanic Housing Development Corporation in Chicago, described how Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood has dealt with gentrification through a collaborative effort involving a variety of stakeholders.

Humboldt Park, on the city’s west side, has one of Chicago’s largest parks – more than 200 acres with a beach, swimming pool, baseball diamonds, tennis courts, playgrounds, bike paths, an assembly area, ice skating, picnic areas and a field house with two gyms. Since the late 1800s, Humboldt Park has remained a working-class neighborhood with strong Puerto Rican roots, but the neighborhood has attracted a blend of ethnic groups.

“You cannot stop gentrification,” Roldan said. “But the enormous capital generated by gentrification provides a real opportunity, to the extent that it can be part of a cohesive plan and bring in resources to improve the future of the entire community.”

Forum participants were asked for ideas and recommendations that could be useful in preparing a guideline for managing gentrification.

Among the suggestions for the private sector, public sector or both:

• Understand upfront that housing, jobs, education and transportation issues are all related to gentrification. It’s not just a housing issue.

• Factor in the varying impact of gentrification on minority groups, which have different levels of income and education.

• Pursue tax credits for first-time home buyers who are unable to itemize deductions on their tax returns.

• Streamline tracking of vacant properties that might be used to build affordable units.

• Create a plan, including measurable results, that addresses the affordable housing needs of the entire community and be prepared to offer developers incentives to implement the vision.

• Educate private-sector employers and the public in general about the value of having jobs close to housing and raise awareness of the benefits of employee-assisted housing programs.

• Understand that public policies must address the social as well as physical infrastructure of neighborhoods.

The ultimate test of successful gentrification management, Roldan noted, “is whether the neighborhood will be a place where your (grown) children can afford to live and will want to live.”

ULI is a nonprofit education and research institute that works to provide responsible leadership in land use.