Gentrification

Is gentrification a good or bad thing?

Has the process of gentrification taken place in the districts of Woodbrook/Victoria?

Yes.

Is gentrification a good or bad thing?

Now it gets complicated.

Firstly let’s establish what is gentrification .

Gentrification occurs when wealthier people purchase or rent properties in low/middle income communities, they transforming these neighborhoods into “middle class residential and or commercial” zones. (Lees et al. 2008:xv.).  Gentrification has been linked to “economic processes, the role of human agency and consumer preferences”. (Hall 2012).

Gentrification = Movement

 The neighborhoods of Woodbrook/Victoria has been transforming mainly through human influence and consumer preferences. Researcher David Levy (1996) has linked the role of an emerging middle class to the growth of more service oriented businesses and cultural activities.  Some theorists have termed this emerging middle class as the new “creative class” (Florida 2004)(Hall2012).  These individuals choose to locate within these neighborhoods as they are drawn to the diversity and life of the city. 

 Woodbrook/Victoria was first planned as a working class suburb, by 1930 business started to emerge between residences.  By 1980’s private pioneer gentrifies or the ‘new middle class’ began opening pubs, restaurants, casino’s and ‘mas’ camps and other businesses in a very visual way. By 1990, service businesses and financial institutions began entering into the Woodbrook/Victoria districts backed by urban policies.  As seen in Table 1.

Table 1. Shows the, distribution of employment within the Woodbrook/Victoria district, between the years of 1970-1990. The table gives a clear indication and helps to explain the movement from a purely residential area to today’s mixed residential/commercial neighborhood. (Polese 1993)

TABLE 1:  Distribution of Employment (%) within the Woodbrook/Victoria districts, between the years of 1970-1990.

	FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS								BUSINESS SERVICES					TRAVEL SERVICES
Area	Commercial Banks				Holding Companies	Legal Services				Accounting			Advertising	Hotels		Airline Reservations
Woodbrook/ Victoria	1970
	-		-				-			-		-		0.6			-
	1981
	-		1.4				-			6.9		-		1.1
		1990
		12.96		-				6.99			14.7		10.3		1.41

                                                                                                     Source: Central Statistical Office of Trinidad and Tobago (Polese 1993)

This movement has both positive and negative effects on the resident population. On the positive side the area has experienced increased development and an increase in property values. However the  increase in property values,  has equated to a decline in affordable housing.  Butler and Lees (2006) indicate that “socio-economic divisions” usually increases alongside gentrification (Hall 2012). Indeed, “socio-economic divisions” do exist, to what extent it is caused by gentrification in Woodbrook/Victoria I am not sure.

I ask again, is gentrification good or bad thing?

In the neighborhood of Woodbrook/Victoria we are yet to see. Like Hoxton and Barnsbury London and Brooklyn in New York we wait, as we evolve with the hope of a better tomorrow.

Bibliography

Hall, Tim and Heather Barrett. "Urban Geography." 264. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.

Polese, Mario and Sylvain Menard. Is Downtown onthe way down? Documenting the movement of 

office activity in central Port-of-Spain. Research Paper, Montreal: Montreal Interuniversity Group, 1993.