So how did PG County Become a Predominantly Black County? (Baltimore: apartment, condo)

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

Because of gentrification in once strong Hispanic communities in Adams Morgan and Columbia Heights. They are getting pushed to Langley Park, Hyattsville, and Wheaton. Sad to say but, those areas are gentrifying as well (Purple Line, Arts District, and a College Park that's getting its act together). And they will get pushed further out.

It will be interesting to see if parts of PG turn majority White again. 2030 will be an interesting census. The Purple Line will have been in operation for 10 years. Long enough for gentrification of University BLVD through Langley Park. The FBI will have moved to Greenbelt (assumption) by 2020 and that part of Greenbelt will have had 10 years to redevelop. Wheaton will return to it's glory days. College Park will be a top ten college town with a fully completed East Campus and a developed west campus and a completed M Square research park. National Harbor should be built out by then sending shock waves up St. Barnabas Road to Branch Avenue. Konterra will be fully developed and become Tyson's Corner-esque.

Of course this is all speculation. But I think gentrification won't stop until it reaches the Beltway on the Maryland side increasing the White population to levels not seen since the 70s.

That wouldn't surprise me.

As an outsider, who definitely also wants the advantages of being in a non-car-centric environment and wants affordability. The Northern PG area looks desireable.

Hyattsville & College Park both have nice 'bones' to them. Based on aesthetics, they certainly look desireable to me. The only part that really throws me off about them is that people seem to regularly hate on them so much. If any shift in momentum towards them were to occur, it would create a quick snowball effect I'm sure.

I drove all around MoCo, and it just didn't seem desireable in an aesthetic way. MoCo looked a bit better than Fairfax County though aesthetically. However, northern PG county seemed to have the more tighter houses together, with some real nice foilage and bungalows and brick and a more desireable 'home-like size' in there. By my standards, a nice home isn't a mcmasion and doesn't have a huge lawn to mow.

And actually, I didn't think demographically that northern PG looked all that different than parts of MoCo. The only thing holding northern PG back is, I think the schools, and the reputation of crime. I'm kind of wondering that if someone were to research it, they'd find that plenty of MoCo areas have just as much if not more crime than northern PG county. I might be wrong about that, but it wouldn't surprise me if I was right about it.

[EducatedBro82]

Originally Posted by Tiger Beer

That wouldn't surprise me.

As an outsider, who definitely also wants the advantages of being in a non-car-centric environment and wants affordability. The Northern PG area looks desireable.

Hyattsville & College Park both have nice 'bones' to them. Based on aesthetics, they certainly look desireable to me. The only part that really throws me off about them is that people seem to regularly hate on them so much. If any shift in momentum towards them were to occur, it would create a quick snowball effect I'm sure.

I drove all around MoCo, and it just didn't seem desireable in an aesthetic way. MoCo looked a bit better than Fairfax County though aesthetically. However, northern PG county seemed to have the more tighter houses together, with some real nice foilage and bungalows and brick and a more desireable 'home-like size' in there. By my standards, a nice home isn't a mcmasion and doesn't have a huge lawn to mow.

And actually, I didn't think demographically that northern PG looked all that different than parts of MoCo. The only thing holding northern PG back is, I think the schools, and the reputation of crime. I'm kind of wondering that if someone were to research it, they'd find that plenty of MoCo areas have just as much if not more crime than northern PG county. I might be wrong about that, but it wouldn't surprise me if I was right about it.

Hyattsville, College Park have somewhat "black eyes" Hyattsville is mainly due to the surrounding areas of Bladensburg, Landover Hills, and Landover. They actually call those areas Hyattsville now.

College Park is mainly due to the Langley Park, Adelphi and Takoma Park areas. While some spots of those areas are good, some have more crime and poverty and gangs.

[JBPisgah]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

White people aren't leaving the suburbs because of minorities,

There has been substantial white flight in Owings Mills as black families have moved into the area in large numbers. Maybe the present diversity of DC neighborhoods is just a temporary effect of gentrification of black neighborhoods by whites.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by JBPisgah

There has been substantial white flight in Owings Mills as black families have moved into the area in large numbers. Maybe the present diversity of DC neighborhoods is just a temporary effect of gentrification of black neighborhoods by whites.

Like I said, as areas inside the beltway become too expensive, that will push lower income minorities further out into the outer suburbs. Whites historically hold more wealth and are able to migrate toward more expensive housing which is increasingly inside the beltway. These areas inside the beltway offer closer proximity to transit and jobs in the DC core. As DC and its walk ability become a popular trend, it will draw those empty-nest suburbanites back toward the city.

[JBPisgah]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

White people aren't leaving the suburbs because of minorities, they are moving closer to work or to urban walkable cores.

There is a trend toward infilling urban areas as you say. I don't know what the evidence is that whites have stopped leaving areas when minorities move in. Maybe whites are doing both - leaving to more popular cities, and leaving suburbs because minorities are moving in after being priced out from the city. You see less segregation in the future, but maybe blacks and whites are just switching places.

[HarryBTL]

Forced busing is what finally tipped the scales big time and sent white flight into overdrive. Talking back in the 70s.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by HarryBTL

Forced busing is what finally tipped the scales big time and sent white flight into overdrive. Talking back in the 70s.

A good number of people believe this is the case.

[HarryBTL]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

A good number of people believe this is the case.

Oh it was. It wasn't all about race either. Part had to do with parents not being happy that the kids were being sent so far away from home for school.

[JBPisgah]

The issue of race and schools is confounding. Achievement often - always? - decreases with large increases in black students. I believe this is true for latino students, too.

White people who have means relocate. I've seen my sister and her friends who used to live in Baltimore make only decision they could for their kid's sake - they moved. Then you have segregation again.

Even when schools are mixed, there is often self segregation by tracking. In my high school, black and white students were self segregated by AP and honors classes. I saw black students in the hall, but had about three in class with me from sophomore year on.

I feel bad for the black kids who don't get a good education, and I feel bad for our county which has to compete against a rising Asia with this millstone of an achievement gap around its neck.

[North Beach Person]

Starting in the 1970's developers built garden style apartments which were lower in rent and marketed to Blacks in DC. Arguably the school system is better than that of DC.

As someone mentioned the aging of the population transitioned the racial makeup of the school system faster than that of the general population (a similar thing is happening now in Charles County with Black Flight from Prince George's).

White Flight played a part in areas like Seat Pleasant which was mostly white through the 1960's into the early 70's. Glen Arden near there was founded by freed Blacks and became one of the first incorporated municipalities.

The school system was not desegregated until the late 1960's (over Christmas break) and schools like Suitland which had been majority (large) White became nearly even. Frederick Douglass High School, along with Fairmont Heights one of the two designated Black high schools, went from 100% Black to 80%+ White.