Gentrification has Affected the People Because as the City Transforms

Gentrification has Affected the People Because as the City Transforms
Changing a character of a neighborhood that is poor in terms of economy to a common urban area with a stable economy is not easy. It involves changes such as improving housing which affects the current inhabitants, introducing new business, which also affects the existing business, and displacing the low-income families. The process has two sides, the advantageous side and the disadvantageous side, which is why handling the process is crucial. The main advantage is that the area transforms and economic value increases due to establishing new businesses and infrastructure, which attracts more wealthy people to invest in the area (Smith pg. 510). The issue occurs when the area's transformation requires demographic displacement of people living there. The people living in that area are mostly low-income earners. Therefore, after the economic value increases, these people cannot afford the average household income since it becomes expensive. As much as the wealthier move to other areas to develop the economic value of that area or state, they should be considered by the people living there. These people work minimal wages, which is why they cannot afford the expensive lifestyle that the wealthier people set when they invest in poor urban areas. For example, in New York, gentrification has affected the people because as the city transforms, the inhabitants cannot afford the lifestyle.
There are several ways to help the inhabitants continue living an affordable life despite gentrification, including setting aside affordable housing contingent on residency for professionals who earn minimal wages. The plan of providing affordable housing is to ensure people earning medium and minimal household income get reasonable house units at an affordable price (Boyack, pg. 1183). As urban developers plan on new infrastructure in places where gentrification will occur, they ought to consider a plan to provide inhabitants with affordable housing. Secondly, providing public funds to support artisans who depend on the arts and culture of a place to earn their living. Since the process involves demographic displacement, the government needs to set up a fund that supports arts because the moment people are told to move, they cannot do what they used to do. They lose clients that they used to sell their arts to, and also their place of work might be affected; therefore, with the fund that the federal government will provide to them, they will set up other working stations to continue selling their arts and preserve the culture of their place for the future generation.