3 ms·
I hate the word Gentrification. I live in Allentown, PA and we have gotten around 1 billion dollars of investment for our center city. It really has been a BIG
by baldfat 11y ago
I hate the word Gentrification. I live in Allentown, PA and we have gotten around 1 billion dollars of investment for our center city. It really has been a BIG change for our city of 120,000 people city.
Problems with the city: White flight happened late (1980s) HIGH transient population. 50% of the school district's child will end the school year at a different school then they started the school year with. Over 90% of the district receives free lunches. So much that 100% of students get a free lunch with a 85% poverty level.
Claims of Gentrification: The population was being moved out of the neighborhood. Did I already state that we have a 50% transient population? How establishing a population that isn't below the poverty line in a city full of beautiful Victorian three story row homes (I love mine) and dozens of mansions moving an established population? Matter of fact the local Occupy Movement camped at our city hall and was protesting. A city with HIGH poverty was a 1% issue????
The conversations were hysterical with Occupy in our city about what they thought was the Gentrification in our city.
After having al
- jinushaun 11y agoDrove through Allentown a few times. Not sure where the "nice part of town" is, but Allentown needs some gentrification. Rows and rows of abandoned houses.
- angdis 11y agoI was a "transient" in Allentown for 2 years because of work. Allentown has a profound sadness about it that I've seen in other rust-belt cities. Gentrification is very much a positive reaction to the vacuum that was created after years of dis-investment. The city has good bones, housing stock that can be restored to stunning with a little love, and a location and infrastructure that is excellent for business. People are only starting realize this now after moving to the exburbs and finding that they don't like driving 10 - 50 miles for virtually all excursions. Hope that Allentown makes it, it never deserved to be abandoned.
- baldfat 11y agoThings have really turned around. The sky line has been transformed and we have a lot of more businesses in center city and a full entertainment center. I moved here 8 years ago and I love this city and feel like everything is so close to me.