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I just don't appreciate your characterization of gentrifiers as "passive-aggressive tools." There are plenty of people moving into transitional areas that want to be part of the community, not whitewash it and drive older residents out. Just because many of them are visibly different, being white, or young; and attract businesses that may be out of the norm for the neighborhood, doesn't make them tools. Their culture is just as valid as anyone else's, and there's nothing that makes your typical DC Subs/Chinese food/Chicken/Fish dump intrinsically better or more 'welcoming' than a Starbucks or brunch restaurant. You may have liked that greasy panini and felt welcome there but that business exists to make money, just like any other. A place being less swanky doesn't make it some bastion of community togetherness and diversity.
Oh, OK. You can be right and wrong at the same time. A place that lets patrons know, through a moderately priced menu, that it's aware of the types of food that often appeal to long-time AA residents, Hispanics and gentrifyers can send a different message of inclusiveness than a restaurant that simply offers a $30 fixed-price brunch on the weekend. I'm not sure such establishments have to be exclusive of one another, but one of the challenges in DC is finding neighborhoods where such places easily co-exist. It seems that many areas go from the "Chicken/Fish dump" stage to the gastropub and tapas stage without much of a pause in between.
If you've ever spent time in a place like the Ironbound district in Newark or an Astoria or Jackson Heights in Queens, you'll know what I'm describing. If not, feel free to keep celebrating DC in its current incarnation with no reservations (though you might need reservations at some of the swanky new places in town). I posted about Brightwood because it seemed to me that it might be, or had the potential to become, an appealing neighborhood with a distinct vibe. The point was not to rehash whether gentrifyers are a positive, negative or neutral influence on DC neighborhoods. Some are tools; others are not.
I actually am familiar with that part of Newark, and I understand what you mean. The thing is, it's not all or nothing in most gentrifying areas in DC. Nowhere is going from Anacostia to Georgetown in a few years. A couple of the most dramatic neighborhood transformations I can think of are the H street and Columbia Heights revivals, and there is no lack of fried fish or lattes in either of those places. They are still appealing and friendly, and some of those long-time AA residents love to get a $30 brunch every now and then! I don't even really have a point anymore, I'm just sick of people complaining about yuppies like they are some kind of unified force trying to turn DC into Bethesda, and your post seemed to have shades of that.
I actually am familiar with that part of Newark, and I understand what you mean. The thing is, it's not all or nothing in most gentrifying areas in DC. Nowhere is going from Anacostia to Georgetown in a few years. A couple of the most dramatic neighborhood transformations I can think of are the H street and Columbia Heights revivals, and there is no lack of fried fish or lattes in either of those places. They are still appealing and friendly, and some of those long-time AA residents love to get a $30 brunch every now and then! I don't even really have a point anymore, I'm just sick of people complaining about yuppies like they are some kind of unified force trying to turn DC into Bethesda, and your post seemed to have shades of that.
It was really more for dramatic effect to underscore why, on that particular day, Brightwood appealed to me, and not to rag on Columbia Heights. Had I taken the Metro there that day, as I have done on other occasions, rather than been driving into the city, I might have walked around and scouted out something that appealed to me. I remember Columbia Heights very well from when parts of it were decrepit and/or dangerous, and it requires a more selective type of memory than I possess to look back on that era with complete nostalgia. To actually see the Tivoli - vacant for so long - restored and back in the picture is certainly a good thing.
Location: YOU are NOT a Washingtonian. YOU are a GENTRIFIER from the CVS, Whole Foods, Starbucks & Condos era.
367 posts, read 643,899 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cochrynn
I actually am familiar with that part of Newark, and I understand what you mean. The thing is, it's not all or nothing in most gentrifying areas in DC. Nowhere is going from Anacostia to Georgetown in a few years. A couple of the most dramatic neighborhood transformations I can think of are the H street and Columbia Heights revivals, and there is no lack of fried fish or lattes in either of those places. They are still appealing and friendly, and some of those long-time AA residents love to get a $30 brunch every now and then! I don't even really have a point anymore, I'm just sick of people complaining about yuppies like they are some kind of unified force trying to turn DC into Bethesda, and your post seemed to have shades of that.
I love Bethesda. I used to play basketball behind Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (before they remodeled it) and then head over to Shakeys to eat pizza afterwards.
Is Brightwood generally recognized as a neighborhood that strikes such a nice balance?
I don't if it's generally recognized as such. But it is a regular, working-class section of Washington, DC that's not completely beleaguered by crime.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JEB77
Is there a perception that it's only a matter of time before it becomes almost oppressively upscale, or does it still have a way to go?
There's no Metro there, so the gentrification will take longer to reach Brightwood. It's also a little ways from Downtown, which is something that makes it a little less attractive to yuppies.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JEB77
At least for families looking to live in DC, in an area that's not overwhelmingly geared toward 20-somethings, it seems like an attractive proposition, but perhaps I've not done enough research on the area's schools or safety.
It always seemed fine to me. Schools would be a greater concern to me than safety, but isn't that the case in nearly all DC neighborhoods?
And you're right that it's not really geared toward 20-somethings. For now. It's only a matter of time before someone "discovers" it, buys a house, and then starts demanding more density and more amenities (bars, bars, "eats," and more bars!) in the "nabe."
Heh, I went to school with plenty of future yuppies that in turn are gonna be future preps. They're fine folk, but there's something about yuppies that annoys me.
Maybe they just remind me of American Psycho haha.
Location: YOU are NOT a Washingtonian. YOU are a GENTRIFIER from the CVS, Whole Foods, Starbucks & Condos era.
367 posts, read 643,899 times
Reputation: 148
One of my yuppie friends used to carry $10,000 cash on him to impress the ladies.
It is a miracle that we never got robbed.
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