Gentrification or Beautification of Brooklyn? : A study 2006-2013 by Marivic Guevara, Guest Blogger
As the renter-powered site, RentHackr preps for a re-launch, I was approached by founder, Zeb Dropkin to further my interest in the topic of GENTRIFICATION. I want to see just how much RentHackr can be used as a tool to see how gentrified neighborhoods affects the behaviors of apartment hunters moving into (or out of) Brooklyn. As a former Brooklynite, I can attest to how much my ability to make an income in NYC aligns with which neighborhoods to settle into.
Photo: Marivic Guevara (http://instagram.com/p/KSvKdPOonJ/)
If you live in any major cosmopolitan city, you've probably heard of the word Gentrification. The dictionary defines is as:
The restoration and upgrading of deteriorated urban property by middle-class or affluent people, often resulting in displacement of lower-income people.
Being a California-transplant and having lived in NY for the past 7 years in ALL 5 boroughs (yes, you read that correctly), I have seen first-hand what it means for a neighborhood to be gentrified. RentHackr is also keen on how apartment rentals are affected by this inevitable evolution of gentrification in NYC (and beyond).
If you break down the textbook definition, key words like "restoration" and "upgrading" seem to be uplifting positive words. Then you get to the part where it says, "resulting in displacement of lower-income people."
If the goal of gentrification is to restore and upgrade these "deteriorated urban properties," why does it have to be by middle-class or affluent people and why does it result in "displacement of lower-income people?" Does $ really supersede the well-being of lower-income people? There is no obvious answer to these questions but if the dictionary defines Gentrification in this way, there has to be some sort of subjective reasoning behind it, right?
This map from Property Shark shows property price changes from 2004-2012.
According to an analysis by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute's Michael Petrilli, Brooklyn is home to four of the top 25 fastest gentrifying zip codes nationwide. Also, in 2009, Brooklyn's median per capita income was just under $23,000. This number is almost $10,000 below the national average. So, does this mean that although the neighborhoods are being "GENTRIFIED," shouldn't residents be earning higher wages, not lower? More businesses = More jobs, right? NOT necessarily.
Having worked and lived in Park Slope, Brooklyn between 2006-2008, I saw first-hand how 4th Ave went from a chain of tire shops to hipster bars, dance studios and swanky high-rises. New York Magazine also named it the most livable neighborhood in NYC in 2010. I continue to cross the Manhattan Bridge from the LES to support the small business that survived the building of Jay-Z's pride and joy, the Barclay's Center. Although he is the unofficial ambassador of the Brooklyn Nets, games and concerts have certainly helped businesses like Melt (440 Bergen) thrive. I know this firsthand because I lived 2 blocks away from the Navy Yards and worked at Melt when they first opened in the neighborhood. The tips that I earned back then, is far less than what the current mixologists at Melt currently make (I've asked). Now that the Barclay Center is up and running, foot-traffic in nearby businesses are also benefitting.
The map shows substantial increases in property values in Brooklyn neighborhoods directly across the river from where I live now in the LES. Neighboring Park Slope hoods such as Cobble Hill/Boerum Hill, Greenpoint, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens/Gowanus (also tended bar at PJ Hanley's on Court St) are among the top 10 that fits the bill.
*Single-fare metro-card: $2.00 $2.50
*Avg. cost of 2-bdrm apt: $2000 $3200
*Avg. cost for lunch: $10.25 $14.15
*Avg. cost for a muffin+tea $3.75 $4.60
*Avg. electrical bill in 2-br/mo $36.18 $48.13
*Avg. cost for weekly groceries $45 $52
*Avg. $ for 3-course dinner for 2 $76 $92
*Federal Min. wage in $5.15 $8.75
*Prices sourced from personal receipts/inquiries from same landlord & apartment building, same small businesses in existence from 2006-Feb 2013 and current rates enforced by the state of NY for said items.
*Taken in front of Cherry Tree Bar on 4th Ave.
In conclusion, whether economists or the governing councils in your region call it, "gentrification" or "beautification" is up to the residents. If it's possible for the gentrification of a certain neighborhood to result in its beautification is really up to the quality of life that an individual experiences in the process. For me, I've lived a pretty nomadic life that fits my ability to earn a wage that is also conducive to my minimalistic lifestyle.
The gentrification of Park Slope from 2006-2013 has been gradual but has provided a more difficult challenge to live a minimalistic way of life. New restaurants pop up but wages aren’t necessarily matching up to enable you to enjoy them. Even if the federal minimum wage increases in the next couple of months, the high costs of rent will continue which doesn't match up with the small increase in your paycheck. It was fairly manageable to keep up with the high cost of rent back in 2006 as a mixologist (refer back to the 17.4% increase on the map) but has been less so with its popularity by a more affluent stream of renters moving in.
Investors who propose the construction of job creating venues, like the Barclay Center, should consider beautification in their plans because low-income people should also benefit from the gentrification of a neighborhood. What good is it to create new jobs if you push the people out who live in the current financial conditions/times in places they can no longer afford?
RentHackr hopes that renters who sign up on the site will help landlords and leasing agents to price rentals accordingly-leading to a better transparency for the entire rental market. The rental market is broken, and whether or not the topic of gentrification affects this marketplace can only be fixed by renters like me and you. What are you waiting for? Sign up now at http://www.renthackr.com!
**BONUS*** TO watch a video clip of ASCAP winner and singer/songwriter, ROSI GOLAN performing at MELT for Rude Monkey Fundraiser in 2007, click here.
2) Photos & Video: Marivic Guevara's own archive
3) Minimum wage information: *http://www.mpnnow.com/topstories/x1781261465/Minimum-wage-question-on-the-table
*http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0774473.html
**Marivic Guevara is a guest blogger from Start-Up Chile working alongside RentHackr's founder and CEO, Zeb Dropkin
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