Merits of Gentrification to the Community - Essay Sample

Gentrification process is not harmful to the neighborhood as its benefits exceed its demerits to the community. Although the process is associated with displacement of the poor community in the area, the broad perspective of transformation that follows after gentrification overweighs the cons accrued to initial inhabitants. Gentrification process has fundamental advantages especially regarding enhancement, improvement, and transformation of a community and therefore its not harmful to the neighborhood. Despite the little challenges subjected to the poor community due to displacement, the long-term impact of the process is appealing and favorable to both new entrants and previous people in the neighborhood.

Gentrification is a common term that refers to the arrival of wealthier people in a particular existing urban district, a correlated rise in prices for rent and property values, and modification of areas character and culture. However, the term is often used in the wrong context to suggest the displacement poor people by rich outsiders. Gentrification process has several benefits in the neighbor reduced crime, economic improvement in the neighborhood, new investments in infrastructure and building construction. Unfortunately, to some extent, the benefits of gentrification are often enjoyed inappropriately, especially with the new arrival while the established community finds them socially and economically marginalized (Valoy, 2017).

As depicted from the two articles, gentrification process has several demerits which make it unpopular among the poor displaced people. First, gentrification is regarded as the primary cause of conflicts in the main cities of America, especially along racial and economic fault lines. Neighborhood change is often perceived as a discharge of social justice, in which the wealthy people, especially the whites are congratulated and appreciated for improving the once dilapidated neighborhood who minority and poor people are displaced through triggering skyrocketing rents and increase in economic change. Gentrification also incorporates some benefits to the community. For instance, regarding demographics perspective, there is an increase in median incomes, a significant rise in the racial proportion of minorities, reduction in the household size and the ultimate replacement low-income families with young singles and couples. Neighborhood change has also facilitated new ideas regarding attractive and desirable standards, landscaping, and architecture. With the neighborhood change, conversion of the rental house to ownership development of luxury housing and restaurant which create a source of fundamental job opportunity for the poor people.

Gentrification process mostly tends to occur in specific places with certain qualities that are desirable for making a change to the neighborhood. The diversity, convenience, and vitality of the urban are some of the features that gentrification enhance. The old building and industrial buildings are often the characteristics that attract individuals looking to improve regarding investment prospects to nurture and improve the life of the new entrants and create job opportunities for the people who end up being vacated. Interestingly, gentrification operates by accretion-gathering momentum, in which people are willing to settle in an unfamiliar neighborhood to improve its stature. When the familiar faces settle, more people start streaming in bringing new ideas and investment to the new area. Many people then start learning about the attractive community that has been discovered, and people accelerate settling the area while the unstable community gets displaced.

In certain aspects, a neighborhood that has been gentrified can turn to the victims of its success. The improvement of desirability and increase of rent, property values often ends up eroding qualities that initially attracted people in the first place. When the success and enhancement come to a neighborhood, its not only shared by the established new entrants. However, displacement of the initial communities is the most troubling impacts gentrification causes (Gillespie, 2017). Poor people are left with nowhere to settle. No one is more vulnerable to adverse effects of gentrification than the renters. When the rents of the housing go up, tenants are involuntary pushed out either through natural turnover, eviction or hiked rents. However, despite the shortcomings, the process causes, gentrification is not harmful to the neighborhood regarding the long-term impacts of the community. The economic effects of the gentrification vary proportionally depending on the new arrival. Gentrification symbolizes the arrival of new investment and new tax base which significantly improves the economic activity of the area. Rehabilitation which favors inhabitants, a housing development of new shop and restaurant and high wage are some of the benefits accrued to gentrification. The previous community might take advantage of this development specifically in construction sector and services sector, getting improved health services, education and enjoying other government services.

Despite the numerous cons that may be subject to the poor people in the neighborhood, Public improvement and enhancement are realized, streets are lightened, and park established, infrastructure revitalization by the federal government to enhance the well-being of the wealthy people (Valoy, 2017) and the neighboring people. The new arrival of the wealthy people may push the government to improve on it aesthetically and modification of new designs, historic preservation and appropriate laws that favor the resident. As depicted by the two article, gentrification is not harmful to a neighborhood, on the contrary despite the minor displacement of the poor, a lot benefit in the form of improvement of health services, education, infrastructure, and the job is enhanced.

The physical, social, as well as the economic impacts associated with gentrification, frequently leads to prosperity regarding social integration, economically and cultural diversity in the neighborhood. Although residents that have been there earlier on may have felt being embattled, excluded and ignored new entrants long terms repercussion of gentrification ends up favoring them. New and incoming residents are continually bewildered by the ever raising accusations linking their plans and efforts trying to improve the same local conditions as being racists or even hostile when in the real sense they end up resulting in development that was not there initially (Gillespie, 2017). However, the negative impact of gentrification is insignificant, and the benefit weighs the demerits making gentrification beneficial to the neighborhood.

References

Valoy, Patricia. "Reasons Why Gentrification Hurts Communities Of Color." Everyday Feminism, 2017, pp. 1-3. https://everydayfeminism.com/author/patriciav/.

Gillespie, Patrick. "How Gentrification May Benefit The Poor." CNN MONEY, 2017, http://money.cnn.com/2015/11/12/news/economy/gentrification-may-help-poor-people/index.html.