Is Gentrification Ruining Los Angeles or Saving It? LA Weekly Article (Pasadena: 2013, leasing)

[jm1982]

Originally Posted by cityKing

Gentrification can be good for restoring neighborhoods for sure.

But some neighborhoods need to be restored without losing it's identity/culture.

Gentrification does no good when you make them all cookie cutter like.

True, but sometimes cookie cutter is better than what is there now. Of course places that have nice buildings and architecture are worth restoring, but there are a lot of places that are just run down and dilapitated , in those circumstances tearing down and building new buildings with character are the best options.

Is anyone really going to miss that Pawn shop building, or the check cashing store, or that building that houses that "asian massage parlor"?

[cityKing]

Originally Posted by jm1982

True, but sometimes cookie cutter is better than what is there now. Of course places that have nice buildings and architecture are worth restoring, but there are a lot of places that are just run down and dilapitated , in those circumstances tearing down and building new buildings with character are the best options.

What I'm saying though is some cities that are cultural and unique get destroyed sometimes when gentrified. If a city has a reputation for hispanic culture and you gentrify it and it's no longer the same, than at that point gentrification did more harm then good. Gentrification is only good if done properly.

[N610DL]

It would be one thing if high rent & gentrification was sparking more local businesses (especially bars) to open up but it really hasn't. I feel there has been a very rapid approach to new housing construction, but not a lot in new establishments where they are building them. LA's gentrification theory is Mcdonald's style condo's first, new businesses later -- if it ever even happens.

That said, it's amazing what gentrification has done to the crime levels of the city over a 10-15 year time span. Even still, seems like the Westside is where it's at these days instead of the overrated inland areas that have seen these gentrified patterns.

[MordinSolus]

Originally Posted by N610DL

It would be one thing if high rent & gentrification was sparking more local businesses (especially bars) to open up but it really hasn't. I feel there has been a very rapid approach to new housing construction, but not a lot in new establishments where they are building them. LA's gentrification theory is Mcdonald's style condo's first, new businesses later -- if it ever even happens

Businesses have to know that their investments have a chance of paying off. New homes/housing doesn't automatically equate to a thriving neighborhood.

[StreetLegal]

Originally Posted by N610DL

It would be one thing if high rent & gentrification was sparking more local businesses (especially bars) to open up but it really hasn't. I feel there has been a very rapid approach to new housing construction, but not a lot in new establishments where they are building them. LA's gentrification theory is Mcdonald's style condo's first, new businesses later -- if it ever even happens..

Something tells me you've not been in Los Angeles for long. While rooftops do come first, anyone familiar with what has happened in places like Downtown LA and Silverlake over the past 15 years knows that lots of new bars, restaurants and shops have opened that weren't there before.

Originally Posted by N610DL

That said, it's amazing what gentrification has done to the crime levels of the city over a 10-15 year time span. Even still, seems like the Westside is where it's at these days instead of the overrated inland areas that have seen these gentrified patterns.

What overrated inland areas are you referring to? The Westside is overrated...

[bpeeps]

Dang ya'll are still going at this, huh.

[jm1982]

Originally Posted by StreetLegal

Something tells me you've not been in Los Angeles for long. While rooftops do come first, anyone familiar with what has happened in places like Downtown LA and Silverlake over the past 15 years knows that lots of new bars, restaurants and shops have opened that weren't there before.




What overrated inland areas are you referring to? The Westside is overrated...

Also pretty much all of the people living in gentrified areas in Los Angeles are living in existing housing rather than new builds. This is because there is hardly any land available to build new homes in L.A and it has been built up for quite some time.

The L.A market is vastly different from an area like South Florida, where I am working now where they literally have acres and acres of land that can be built. This plays a big role in why their housing costs are much lower here.

A new 'hot area' in the Miami-Dade county area is Doral, where Trump owns a golf course and where Miss Universe was filmed. There is still a lot of land that is unbuilt. There are about 50,000 people living in Doral and they have businesses there..but they are all the strip mall types of businesses. About $1billion is being spent to create a downtown. Probably something like 'the Grove" in L.A or Americana from what it sounds like.

In city of L.A you simply don't have these types of situations , a lot of the businesses in the gentrified areas are still Mom and Pops rather than huge chains. Also a lot of the trendy places were popular business BEFORE the hipsters arrived and just went from dive bar to more upscale dive bar for example.

Also oftentimes restuarant owners will seek to open a place in an area with lower rent. These types of operations seeking lower rent are more often the independent startup type places rather than the big chains that can afford to open anywhere.

What happens is the rundown ,cheap area then becomes the cool new part of town.

In Miami this has happened in the Wynwood District , which is comparable to a Silverlake or DTLA in L.A , filled with hipsters and arts galleries. Early investors/developers in the area bought property for next to nothing and have made a fortune as it's become a hot spot.

Another big difference between L.A and a place like Miami is that L.A is pretty antidevelopment, while Miami seems very pro development. Their newish zoning actually encourages high density near rail lines and there are tons of skyscraper buildings built and being built.

Miami21: Your City, Your Plan

[coltoncity]

Originally Posted by LA Weekly Article View Post
Money can be isolating. Rich people stay rich, in part, because they don’t share their stuff. Poor people are far more generous than, say, my rich grandfather. The rich are envious of those in tight-knit communities because they hate thinking that money can’t buy what the poor enjoy.

I agree this is way off base. I am very middle class but I have known a few people who have a Lot of money. They keep it because they are careful what they spend it on and the most important reason is rich people make other rich people more rich. They help each other by helping their rich friends meet other rich friends who can open large doors.

[Marv101]

People are moving to where the jobs and more affordable housing is which means the booming IE as opposed to downtown LA, where a whopping TWO PERCENT of the metro area residents work.

The middle and low income citizens continue to be devastated by myopic urban planners and their political enablers.

Spending absurd amounts of $$$$ for rail projects in a city where the average transit rider makes under $20K a year certainly isn't very bright either given the enormous decline in the percentage of the area's population composed of children over the past 35+ years.

[StreetLegal]

Originally Posted by Marv101

People are moving to where the jobs and more affordable housing is which means the booming IE as opposed to downtown LA, where a whopping TWO PERCENT of the metro area residents work.

There are about 400,000 people who work in downtown LA. Currently, the DTLA residential population is just over 50,000. Downtown LA has a small residential population compared other cities. It only makes sense to increase housing in downtown. In addition, many of the housing developments in DLTA have taken historic vacant buildings and breathed new life into them as well as the neighborhood.

The Nimby's in places like Brentwood make it very difficult to get any new housing built. DTLA is one of the few neighborhoods that actually welcomes new development.

Originally Posted by Marv101

The middle and low income citizens continue to be devastated by myopic urban planners and their political enablers.

The Myopic urban planners control everything? That is news to me. Nobody put a gun to anyone's head to move to downtown LA or Hollywood. The middle and low-income citizens have been screwed by forces far more powerful and influential than urban planners.

Originally Posted by Marv101

Spending absurd amounts of $$$$ for rail projects in a city where the average transit rider makes under $20K a year certainly isn't very bright either given the enormous decline in the percentage of the area's population composed of children over the past 35+ years.

Huh?