CityLab Portfolio

Melanie Konstant CityLab Portfolio

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Amazon selected the DC area to build its second headquarter. With that, the business has began to expand its impact and footprint in the city. The map above, maps the economic development, charity, and education footprint in DC. Amazon has built data centers, grocery stores, and delivery stations. It also has developed connections with colleges and is investing in different levels of education. Amazon will continue to impact the culture and make up of the city as it continues to grow.  

https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2020/10/05/amazons-dc-area-footprint-in-one-map.html

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One attraction to DC for the highly educated is the wide range of tech jobs. DC is the #3 tech cities in America and the #5 city for startups. VC investment in DC has been growing. 

DC is also the number one city for women in tech. 

https://dmped.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/dmped/page_content/attachments/Tech%20%26%20Innovation.pdf

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In addition to population growth in the city, the population has been growing in the area known as the DMV. As shown above, the population density has been growing in the surrounding suburbs.

https://dc.curbed.com/2019/8/13/20802664/dc-area-development-growth-sprawl-neighborhoods-suburbs

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Another aspect of the DC’s renovation approach is updating parks. One example, is Franklin Park in downtown. As the photos show, the park had been in rough condition prior to the redesign. It also had a large population of individuals experiencing homelessness. Since 2019, the park has been blocked off which has pushed those individuals out of the park into the rest of DC. 

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These images show a before and after of the Wharf in DC. Investment in this area of DC is intended to attract and appeal to tourists - in close proximity to the national mall, the Wharf has a music venue, restaurants, and other attractions. 

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Urbanization

The city government has invested a great deal into the urbanization of many neighborhoods in DC. These include: 

- The Southwest Waterfront: Introduction of new restaurants, bars, condos, and waterfront park.

- Anacostia Waterfront: Development of the Nationals baseball stadium, new housing, restaurants, and hotels. 

- North of Massachusetts Avenue (NOMA): Introduction of a new metro stop led to a boom in residential and office space.

- Colombia Heights: Development of DC USA a major retail complex.

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Not only has the population in DC grown, but it is also changing in demographics. Notably the amount of individuals with college degrees has significantly increased in the city. Cities like DC are extremely attractive for highly educated people. As one researcher stated, “In sum, although production amenities remain the chief reason that highly educated workers seek to live in big cities, the consumption amenities of those cities are being increasingly valued by those same workers” (Baker). In DC, these production amenities are typically higher wages but also innovation and networking opportunities. The consumption amenities are the variety of goods and services. 

https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2016/beyond-bls/pdf/the-lure-of-big-cities-for-the-highly-educated.pdf

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The population increase in DC aligns with other metro areas in the United States. In general, the population of major metro areas and other metro areas was growing between 2010 and 2019. While the growth rate is declining, and this trend may not have continued in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID-19. 

Source: Metropolitan Policy Program

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Prior to 2018, domestic and international migration to DC was consistently increasing. In 2018 and 2019, domestic migration into the city began to decrease. 

Source: DC Policy Center

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Reflection

When I moved to DC, everyone I met gave me estimates of how long they expected me to stay in the city - 2 years, 3 years, no more than 5 years. DC is known to those who live here as a transient city. I’m now approaching my fifth anniversary of living in the city, and am becoming an exception to the rule. I have seen many friends and coworkers leave DC. While people are leaving, the population is growing, the city is changing, and urbanizing. In this final week, I plan to explore the idea of urbanization, population change and growth, and other trends in the city.   

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Home values are incredibly high throughout DC. In Le Droit Park the median value of occupied homes in $803,900. The range of values is wide - the highest census track has a median home value of 1.5 million and the lowest has a median home value of $280,000. 

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Renters were also burdened with costs in the Le Droit Park area at a rate of around 35%. Other areas in DC are far worse for renters, with some census tracks having 70% of renters burdened by cost. 

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Considering how this area has gentrified, it is not surprising that there is a high percentage of homeowners burdened by housing cost. This is based on the 2010 census and its possible this has increased. 

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DC also has some extremely high rates of poverty in particular zip codes. In Le Droit Park, about 14% of people between 2015-2019 were living in poverty. The percent of Black and African American people in this same census track is 25%. Areas in southeast DC had poverty rates as high as 54%. 

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According to the DC Fiscal Policy Institute, as of 2017, income inequality is higher in DC than anywhere else in the country. The top 20% have 29 times more income than the bottom 20%. As the image shows, black families in DC make less than a 1/3 of the median income of white families. Black residents in DC are continuing to face barriers to economic opportunity.  

https://www.dcfpi.org/all/income-inequality-dc-highest-country/

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This map from Google shows all black owned business in the area surrounding Le Droit Park (self identified on Google). GWU has resources for identifying black owned business in DC, Maryland, and Virginia: https://diversity.gwu.edu/black-owned-businesses-dmv-area

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Howard’s neighborhood

The relationship between Howard and the Le Droit Park and other neighborhoods has been rocky. Neighbors have been critical of Howard’s reluctance to upkeep properties in these neighborhoods and mixed emotions about the potential rise in property values that comes with gentrification while desiring beautification. In the early 2000s, the neighborhood began to turn white. The head-butting between the neighborhood and Howard continues, with students frustrated over their campus space being treated like a dog park. As the neighborhood continues to change, residents should take the opportunity to learn about the history of the area and respect culture and norms when visiting the campus. 

 https://www.npr.org/2017/07/25/538894722/when-a-historically-black-universitys-neighborhood-turns-white

https://wamu.org/story/19/05/08/they-dont-understand-howard-neighbors-search-for-solutions-after-dog-walking-uproar/