Lower East Side: Gentrification and Segregation
History of LES
Lower East Side has a rich history of organized crime, encouraging and creating counter-culture and being a home to punk. Originally being the hub for immigrants and the working class population in New York, it has since been hit with massive gentrification efforts and changes. Major hub areas such as Union Square now being surrounded by high scale chain stores and restaurants and hosting expensive fairs and markets. Chinatown, Alphabet, Little Italy, and East Village bringing in even more tradition and backgrounds to this already inclusive area. This neighborhoods is deeply rooted in politics and social reforms as well, often hosting protests and rallies by passionate groups and individuals in its East Village area. However, this once immigrant area soon began filling up with hipsters, musicians, and artists looking for a break and as new younger faced raised, so did the prices and living conditions. Walking through the different areas and streets of Lower East Side, the extreme impacts of gentrification are quite evident and so are the areas that have not been touched yet. Walking just 10 minutes in either direction could either present a highly social hub with high fashion brands and craft breweries, or an entire street of closed down stores with vandalized lots and a high population of homeless individuals who rely on subway vents for comfort. The extremes of gentrification presents itself in this highly segregated neighborhood in New York City.
Census Information
https://popfactfinder.planning.nyc.gov/profile/2957/economic
Families make up over 50% of the neighborhoods population with married couples coming up close second. Census shows that a majority of residence, around 70% are natives and have been born in the surrounding area. The median family household income is $35,000
There are around 73,000 cases of individuals who are markes has earning below the poverty line.
Hispanic/latino of any race make up 40% of the population
White makes up 23% of the population
Asian makes up 25% of population
Potentials
There is a large amount of potential in renovating and improving lots and certain areas without stripping the identity of it at the same time. There are numerous corners and streets where even the smallest of renovation could welcome new businesses and opportunities while still keeping it accessible to locals and the people of that certain area without gentrifying and completely removing its background.
More social and public spaces and hubs. Fairs and markets could set up and be available in more than one location even if it means lessening quantity.
Shelters and community centers for the homeless population to receive aid and security.
Community center for all children to interact without school boundaries.
Volunteer programs, clubs, classes for children in schools to get out in their community more and contribute.
Stations/machines that hand out good useful for homeless individuals.
Main Concerns
Budget/cost distribution revaluation
Is there adequate shelter and resources for the homeless?
Are people truly aware of the situation and statistics of their neighborhood?
How can you renovate and improve without erasing identity and history?
How can we encourage and teach the younger generations to create a more integrated and caring community?
Is integration the answer?
Main Stakeholders
The different groups living in this area include the higher middle class/higher class, to the low class and those below the poverty line. Because the segregation is so extreme and opposite, it is important to see the relationship between the two groups and how they interact. The third important group are the children. Its significant to see how this segregation impacts their development, learning, and their potentials. Comparing the day to day lifestyles and differences of the two extremes. It would also be useful to get the perspective of a bystander, someone who is not from the area but passes by regularly enough to notice and be able to distinguish the differences. Business owners are the last significant group to be in touch with and get the perspective of considering the public determine their vitality.
Interview
Business owners, school officials, students, higher class/lower class residence, members of different race groups would all be potential individuals to interview. So far residences of different races have been interviewed on living conditions and day to day activities and interactions. Business owners, school officials, and students are the next target to be interviewed. Those interviewed already have been hesitant to answer and are protective of their identities and relations. Many refuse to answer at all and others gave vague and small answers. There were a few individuals who seemed passionate about their community. They mainly included moms or younger adults who have been residing in the neighborhood for many years.
Action Plan
My next significant step is to get in touch with schools to really see the impacts of this segregation as the children are the future of this neighborhood. Second, I will be attending a community board meeting at the end of this month to get a better sense of those in charge and authority of decision making. Third, I still have a lot more to research about the origins and beginnings of this gentrification and this sudden change in Manhattan and its real estate. Suddenly the downtown area is becoming the luxury space to live and uptown losing value. Next, I would like to start concluding solutions and resolutions to this issue and coming up with potential ways of solving this segregation issue.
Data Visualization
Seeing and experiencing the absolute extremes that gentrification causes in segregation, I planned that the best way to physically visualize the information I had gathered would be to create a metaphorical building of what is currently happening in LES. First I organized my ideas into this mind map that I separated into three main points of focus, local businesses, citizens, and housing:
I believe that these three categories are the most impacted and manipulative when it comes to gentrification.
In the data visualization structure, I am presenting a divided apartment complex that is sectioned into three parts, local business on the bottom, average housing apartment, and a new wave of luxury and expensive homes being built directly on top of it all. This is to show and say how the already established and old is being take away and the new is being built right on top of the roots and supports of this neighborhood without sometimes even the locals knowing of the plans.
On the bottom layer are presented some locally owned and operated businesses such as a barber shop, restaurant, cafe, and a laundromat.
In this structure I wanted to metaphorically express and show the current state of extremes that is taking place in LES. If you walk 10 minutes in any direction, you can either be presented by bankrupt and destroyed businesses with a large homeless population, or luxury brand stores and exclusive clubs and establishments. Just in this one little neighborhood, the impacts of gentrification is so extreme and large that it has completely segregated and separated almost all aspects.
Resources
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/23/magazine/when-gentrification-isnt-about-housing.html
How the definition of gentrification has changed and how it is being applied to different evolving aspects of an area.
https://www.ny.gov/programs/investing-infrastructure
$100 billion infrastructure plan to rebuild New York
https://nypost.com/2018/08/25/why-nyc-is-priciest-city-in-the-world-for-infrastructure-projects/
New York City has one of the most expensive infrastructures to maintain and rebuild, yet New Yorkers seem to be contempt with these high prices to pay
facts vs. fiction of gentrification
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/03/nyregion/when-gentrification-knocks-on-the-wrong-door.html
as one home owner gets frustrated with offers to sell his place, the history of displacement is developed on
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/28/opinion/affordable-housing-vs-gentrification.html
Affordable housing and Gentrification
https://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/16/answers-about-the-gentrification-of-chinatown/
“Peter Kwong, a Hunter College professor and author of several books on Chinatown, responds to readers.”
SEVEN Analysing segregation using individualised neighbourhoods
John Östh, Bo Malmberg and Eva K. Andersson
- 135-162 (28 pages)
DOI: 10.2307/j.ctt17rw5cs.11
https://www-jstor-org.libproxy.newschool.edu/stable/j.ctt17rw5cs.11
