Thoughts on Gentrification

Many factors drive the process of gentrification. I think the largest factor affecting this process is the rapidly rising global population. With more people comes a greater demand for housing especially near urban centers due to the number of jobs in these urban cores. The gentrification taking place in the downtown eastside (DTES) and Strathcona communities is a perfect example of this process. The demand is there for more housing creating lucrative business opportunities for developers. The DTES once known as the “poorest postal code in Canada” offers land situated very close to the downtown core, at cheaper prices.

Stopping the process of gentrification is a very tough task in my opinion. Vancouver for example has come up with a plan for the redevelopment of the DTES, including more social housing claiming that none of the 18,000+ residents currently living in the area will be displaced. Housing is only one aspect of a neighbourhood though. With the increase in a wealthier population to the area it creates business opportunities catering to this population with a greater income. This in turn pushes out the businesses that have catered to the lower income residents. This 18,000+ current population may still be able to “live” in the area in social housing but they may be driven out of the area due to the higher cost of the basic necessities needed to survive.

Plans associated with mitigating gentrification always seem to focus on the housing aspects when I think an equal part should be placed on the local businesses in the area. What are your thoughts on limiting the process of gentrification on local businesses? Is there a happy medium?

Another point that supports the process of gentrification is the cost of supporting these areas. Using Vancouver as an example again, the cost of health services, policing, maintaining, and other means of supporting this lower income population is very high. These individuals due to their low income pay very little in taxes resulting in the rest of the population in Vancouver picking up the slack. This creates the question of what makes these individuals entitled to live in this area?