will my flags come down?-humboldt pk invasion (Chicago, Lincoln: homes, organic)

[lucky333]

gentrification has ruined chicago and ny. There was a time when I enjoyed visiting these cities. It's awful now. Where have all the interesting people went? Very often the poor people are the essence of a community ot city. I think new orleans was a perfect example. Ny and Chicago have become trendy hangouts for rich kids.

[hsw]

It's a free country...people should be allowed to live wherever they can afford...and desire

Not sure "hipsters" or poor or middle-income or wealthy people have a monopoly on being either boring or interesting

Hottest chicks in any town may live in cheaper, gentrifying neighborhoods, perhaps out of economic necessity, but seem to find their way to upscale bars in MagMile-like settings to meet guys anyway

Would argue most interesting restaurant in Chic today is Alinea, in long-ago gentrified LP.....would argue that most interesting restaurant in Chic in mid-'90s was LeFrancais, in a boring, blue-collar, middle-income suburb, far superior to any restaurant in City at time....

Personally, find conversations w/those who've started and/or run valuable businesses to be far more insightful and interesting than observing cultural "contributions" of alleged artists or poor people who've never had a real job in their life....but to each his own

[via chicago]

Originally Posted by lucky333

gentrification has ruined chicago and ny. There was a time when I enjoyed visiting these cities. It's awful now. Where have all the interesting people went? Very often the poor people are the essence of a community ot city. I think new orleans was a perfect example. Ny and Chicago have become trendy hangouts for rich kids.

I'm not sure what your point is. Gary, Detroit, Flint, and a whole host of other cities have large concentrations of poverty. Not sure you'd want to live there, though I'm sure you'd find plenty of "interesting" people. Yes, gentrification on overload can ruin any neighborhood. But its a cycle, and you can't stop it. Many artists now live in the suburbs because its more affordable. Maybe at some point our bastions of culture will actually BE the suburbs.

Change happens. Deal with it.

"Chicago is a city of contradictions, of private visions haphazardly overlaid and linked together. If the city was unhappy with itself yesterday-and invariably it was-it will reinvent itself today."
-Pat Colander "A Metropolis of No Little Plans"

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by lucky333

gentrification has ruined chicago and ny. There was a time when I enjoyed visiting these cities. It's awful now. Where have all the interesting people went? Very often the poor people are the essence of a community ot city. I think new orleans was a perfect example. Ny and Chicago have become trendy hangouts for rich kids.

Don't worry, there's tons of poor people and poverty remaining in Chicago for the foreseeable future. And with the recession we are entering there will be higher rates of unemployment, crime, homelessness, malnourishment, and desperation. Sounds like good times ahead for you.

[Banx]

So does anybody still wanna join me in making Chicago a giant suburb or what? I mean we already completely destroyed tight-knit neighborhoods and communities, let's keep the ball rolling! I thought the idea was pretty exciting.

[illinoisboy]

So I came into this thread thinking I'd hear a sad story about how diversity has moved into and ruined yet another neighborhood. But no, I was surprised to hear that instead someone is complaining about the coffee drinking, tree hugging, white people that are moving back into a previously white neighborhood.

It was funny reading someone's post about how one day Chicago will turn into just another Portland or Seattle. What do you mean, Portland or Seattle? You mean the clean, safe, and boring cities beause they are still mostly white?

This story about Humbolt Park is one in a million. As this one neighborhood is being fixed up, their are unfortuatly countless other ones across the country doing just the opposite.You should consider yourself lucky that it is the white people "invading" your neighborhood, rather than that other ethnic group...

[Irishtom29]

Well there are still plenty of regular guy neighborhoods around. And there are plenty of regular guys in areas that are stereotyped as hipster (God, the term as currently used must have Lenny Bruce spinning in his grave) yuppie, whatever.

[Banx]

Originally Posted by illinoisboy

So I came into this thread thinking I'd hear a sad story about how diversity has moved into and ruined yet another neighborhood. But no, I was surprised to hear that instead someone is complaining about the coffee drinking, tree hugging, white people that are moving back into a previously white neighborhood.

It was funny reading someone's post about how one day Chicago will turn into just another Portland or Seattle. What do you mean, Portland or Seattle? You mean the clean, safe, and boring cities beause they are still mostly white?

This story about Humbolt Park is one in a million. As this one neighborhood is being fixed up, their are unfortuatly countless other ones across the country doing just the opposite.You should consider yourself lucky that it is the white people "invading" your neighborhood, rather than that other ethnic group...

OK, look I'm not going to address the racial issue again! u can look over like the last 10 of my posts to clarify that. And if I wanted to move to Portland or Seattle, or another culturally bland, boring, college student dominated, non-world class type of city, I would MOVE there (and Chicago is very clean, btw). And yes, I hate these coffee drinking, tree hugging morons that are taking over historically cultural neighborhoods. I would say the same if the majority of them were black, latino or asian. And so while were on the topic of race, why is better that all these people are "white" rather than being some other ethnic group? Cause you know, all other ethnicities are gang banging, violent thugs with bad diets right?


And these neighborhoods are not becoming more diverse when one culture is coming in and completely pushing out and dominating the other. I've explained this as well.

I'm so tired of repeating myself.

[HeadedWest]

Originally Posted by Banx

And these neighborhoods are not becoming more diverse when one culture is coming in and completely pushing out and dominating the other. I've explained this as well.

Diversity is overrated. What we need is a dominating culture of achievement and advancement, however or whoever does it.

[eevee]

Originally Posted by lucky333

gentrification has ruined chicago and ny. There was a time when I enjoyed visiting these cities. It's awful now. Where have all the interesting people went? Very often the poor people are the essence of a community ot city. I think new orleans was a perfect example. Ny and Chicago have become trendy hangouts for rich kids.

so, have you actually LIVED in a poor neighborhood? I'm not talking about a neighborhood that's not trendy or "taken over by yuppies and hipsters", I'm talking about a straight up poor neighborhood. since you love them so much, I assume you live in West Humboldt Park, Englewood, West Garfield Park, or all the other poor areas of Chicago, right? where do you, and all the others here like Banx, actually live anyways? I'm so curious.

New Orleans isn't interesting b/c it has a large population of poor people, it's interesting b/c it's an area rich in culture and history. as pointed out, there are dozens of towns and cities filled with poverty that are dull and there are middle class, gentrified areas w/ plenty of culture.

if people here hate rich people so much, go move to an improvised area. go check out life in the poor areas of Chicago, or even the poor, dying cities across the country (by your example, Detroit should be a hotspot of culture and fun! go there!)