What is the reason that East Nashville hasn't gentrified as fast as Germantown/Salemtown?

[artemis]

Originally Posted by travelhound

The answer is simple, Germantown is on the West side and the West side is a better area. West siders could never live on the East side, I don't care how nice the house or the block is. When you are West you are in prime time that's the bottom line people. The "East Side" is rife with false urban legend. West has more grocery stores, better services, most of the colleges, Vandy, downtown. Besides prices are sky high now to buy in Germantown as compared to the East side, although it's just crazy insane right now it's so competitive. Most desirable properties sell within 3 days if they even go open market anywhere in area 2. Area 6 isn't much better but there are still bargains for young couples over there.

Germantown is on the North side.

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by travelhound

The answer is simple, Germantown is on the West side and the West side is a better area. West siders could never live on the East side, I don't care how nice the house or the block is. When you are West you are in prime time that's the bottom line people. The "East Side" is rife with false urban legend. West has more grocery stores, better services, most of the colleges, Vandy, downtown. Besides prices are sky high now to buy in Germantown as compared to the East side, although it's just crazy insane right now it's so competitive. Most desirable properties sell within 3 days if they even go open market anywhere in area 2. Area 6 isn't much better but there are still bargains for young couples over there.

You haven't been here too long, have you?

[brentwoodgirl]

I disagree with the premise of the thread. As others have pointed out, you would have to compare Germantown to certain sections of EN.
We looked at a house in Germantown 14 years ago. A developer had built several very cute, well priced house in Germantown. We liked the houses and liked the area, but the area was still very up and down, some cute restaurants and houses, and then some really run down structures. I watched the area for a while after we looked at those houses, and it was slowly improving, but not nearly at the rate it has the last few years.
It seemed like East Nashville got all the press for most of the early 2000s, while Germantown was improving much slower.
I know it's really hot now, but I don't think it gentrified all of the sudden. I think it has been slowly happening for a long time and is now suddenly on fire.

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by brentwoodgirl

I know it's really hot now, but I don't think it gentrified all of the sudden. I think it has been slowly happening for a long time and is now suddenly on fire.

That would be correct. The momentum has been building for well more than a decade (even before you were looking there)...but progress was pretty slow. Little improvements here and there. A few popular restaurants. Rehabbing of historic structures.

It had to reach a critical mass of gentrification before it really caught fire, and since then it has undergone a more rapid change than, for my money, any other area of town (12th South/Melrose might be a close second -- but going forward, Germantown will blow it away).

Gentrification has been happening in most of Nashville's urban neighborhoods for a while now. Some are a lot farther along than others...but none of these currently hot areas changed overnight. It's been a strategic process for decades.

A lot of people probably don't realize that even areas like SoBro and The Gulch were targeted for redevelopment in the mid 90s. I think it's hard for some of the new folks to the area to understand what these neighborhoods were like 15-20 years ago. And the seeds were planted even before that.

[dafunk10]

Originally Posted by N.Cal

Bingo. I'd say the vast majority of the new stuff in G/S is multi-family. And they are running out of space since they are now building all the way up to Coffee St. (next to the freeway). Now let's see it move across Rosa Parks to my hood!

Seems it's beginning to do just that. Looks like they'll start on the new apartments in Hope Gardens across from Farmer's Market shortly. Buena Vista will likely be the last of the "Capitol District" neighborhoods to gentrify

[BayAreaDave]

How does one gentrify Buena Vista when like half of the neighborhood's population resides in the Cheatham Place housing project? Is that particular project less wild than Cayce homes or Jc Napier?

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by BayAreaDave

How does one gentrify Buena Vista when like half of the neighborhood's population resides in the Cheatham Place housing project? Is that particular project less wild than Cayce homes or Jc Napier?

Cheatham Place doesn't seem to be affecting development right across the street (Werthan)...so why couldn't Buena Vista gentrify? Cayce & the bunch didn't stop Edgefield or East End from gentrifying.

Public housing can be a hindrance to a neighborhood, but it doesn't have to be.