Sharon Zukin argues that much of the value of a neighborhood lies in its people, particularly those that have been there for a long time. While this view alone may not be controversial, Zukin founds many of her arguments on the idea that longstanding residents have more of a claim to a neighborhood than do newcomers. It is here that Zukin’s positions become troublesome. It is difficult to assume that a certain group of people, newcomers, inherently have less of a right to live somewhere than do another group. Still, a certain group of people’s ease of establishing themselves in a neighborhood should not be institutionalized through government policies such as rezoning.
In her interview with Big Think, Zukin introduces the concept of taste. She says that people have different tastes and that these tastes are not merely personal, but also largely affected by society. She goes on to say that when new people with new tastes move into a neighborhood they make old groups with different tastes uncomfortable. The way she places blame on these new people makes me uneasy, as I have trouble automatically blaming them for having different tastes than an existing group, even if these tastes do support wealthy corporate businesses and like interests. Subjectively, it is more difficult to disagree with Zukin as I share the same upset at the boring chain stores and homogeneity that accompany gentrification. Sure, gentrification is an economic growth machine, but it also may be a deterrent of cultural growth. Nevertheless, if a certain people like this like this type of development, do I have the right to say I’m opposed to it on the basis of personal taste? For instance, if people really like Starbucks, should I be okay with a bunch of Starbucks opening up in their neighborhood even though I don’t happen to like Starbucks?
One area in which I find it much easier to agree with Sharon Zukin is in her opposition to certain city planning policies. Zukin argues in favor of “more aggressive government regulation of rents and zoning” to prevent the further stratification of neighborhoods. While I’m not sure to what extent I would favor “aggressive” regulation, I do believe that the city’s current policies are contributing to gentrification by regulating in favor of gentrifiers, never mind against them. Of course, the city has the responsibility to improve and clean up neighborhoods, which likely attracts gentrifiers, but other policies such as rezoning are often clearly detrimental to longstanding residents of neighborhoods.
– Chris Arroyo
Nice post Chris. You avoid easy answers (there are none on this issue) and put the onus where it should be: on public agencies to be fair in their policies. In some ways, what Zukin is urging is merely a corrective to pro-growth policies that have stacked the deck against the poor and working class. But she wants to go further and blame the cultural tastes that produce and accompany gentrification, and this becomes problematic.