Gentrification, Boulevard Revitalization and Authentic Urbanism in Northeast Los Angeles

• In Event: 417 - Regular Session. Urban Sociology: Perspectives on Urban Change

Abstract

This paper situates the case of northeast Los Angeles in the context of the “stage model of gentrification” in urban theory.” It chronicles neighborhood transition through cycles of initial development, disinvestment, revitalization and gentrification and draw focal attention to the role of the arts and neighborhood activism in setting stage for the ensuing gentrification. Northeast LA exhibits elements of “neotraditional” and “green” gentrification, as compared to corporate super-gentrification pattern found in places like downtown LA and the dot-com districts of San Francisco. The boulevards of northeast LA have been a key factor of gentrification at a point when transit-oriented planning and the urban biking movement have converged to revitalize boulevards and public culture all through Los Angeles. Hipsters and newcomer gentrifiers are lured by the “authentic urbanism” and small-town intimacy of the northeast LA boulevards which are crossroads of ethnic culture (Latino and Asian) and vintage Americana. While gentrification in northeast LA generally involves white newcomers and investors displacing low-income Latino residents and businesses, there is some participation of more affluent Latinos in the gentrification process

Author

• Jan C. Lin, Occidental College