July 11, 2005
Neighborhood Dynamics
Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space (or RPITUS) has an interesting post on the little paved park at Florida Ave. and North Capitol St. I pass it now and then, noting how Soul Salon and Spa marks the easternmost of the new businesses on the corridor, past even Thai X-Ing.
Of course, my description of Soul as the "easternmost" business marks me as NW-centric white boy who sees gentrification only as the movement of his friends into more and more distant areas he previously would have never considered visiting. It is worth noting that the public space issues highlighted in the RPITUS post are important for everybody in a gentrifying situation. Existing residents have used the park for years as a gathering space, relief from hot houses and apartments and a recreation area. New residents are drawn to places with green space and can often play a vital role in cleaning and maintaining common areas. Besides, what childless yuppie wouldn't want a place to walk a dog or visit a farmer's market? The Florida Ave. space is little more than a traffic island, but it still draws people.
Perhaps most important reason "transitional" areas need good parks where everyone feels safe is to cut down on some of the strife that accompanies change. Columbia Heights, which has relatively little in the way of common space, suffers (loudly) from a steady drone of complaits and recriminations. Would it help if they saw each other off the internet and away from neighborhood NIMBY committee meetings. Just an idea.
Posted by rj3 at July 11, 2005 8:32 PM
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