Ethical considerations of gentrification

1. Kerri Petersen

2.  Chelsea is one of the neighborhoods
with the highest income inequality
in New York – the average income is
$140,000 compared to the housing
projects average income of about
$30,000.
 Federally subsidized tenants, who
are required to not spend more than
30% of their income on rent, fear
displacement – fewer and fewer
options to stay in community they
grew up in

3.  Make rundown areas of town safer and more inviting
 Small parks are now a place to go for a jog or have a picnic, rather than deal drugs
 Create more business opportunities both for entrepreneurs and well-established
companies
 Better schools
 A trend to affluence
 Local artists have a new clientele
 Poorer artists able sell their work to the upper-middle class moving in
 Historical buildings are renovated/repaired after being neglected
 “It’s brighter, it’s beautiful, it’s more inviting than it used to be”

4.  Income inequality – housing projects with fixed rent for lower income families vs.
upscale apartments across the street
 Higher cost of living that forces the poorer end of the spectrum out of their
neighborhoods
 Alienation of the poor – lost sense of community and belonging as business offices
take over bodegas
 “multimillion dollar condos, tech companies, and fancy restaurants replace mom-and-pop
stores.”
 Trading supermarkets for Apple Stores
 Culture that’s been in the neighborhood for generations has started to disappear
 Rent prices keep rising, forcing out even the “former newcomers once viewed as
gentrifiers” - $2,700/month for 319 sq. ft.

5.  Is the value added from gentrification worth it?
 Do business owners and landlords have a responsibility to the lower
income families or families that have lived in the community for
generations?
 Does it really solve anything – does the problem just move to
another part of town?
 Do better schools help the lower class still living in the area
enough?
 Should there be laws to regulate how far housing prices can go?

6.  http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/25/nyregion/in-chelsea-a-great-wealth-
divide.html
 http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/13/the-pros-and-cons-of-
gentrification