Strategies for Discussing Urban Revitalization in Context of Gentrification

Miriam Axel-Lute provides a dispatch from the Reclaiming Vacant Properties 2019 conference, and specifically from a session titled "Advocating for Revitalization When All Anyone Wants to Talk About Is Gentrification"

According to Axel-Lute, this breakout session, packed with interested observers and participants, brainstormed ideas for messaging strategies in response to assumptions about gentrification and revitalization. After reviewing the substance of presentations by several panelists and the audience at the session, Axel-Lute lists a five strategies and a view sample messages for use in these challenging urban development scenarios.

More detail is included in the article, but here's the Axel-Lutes list of tips:

• "Make sure your market analysis is up-to-date, and share your reasons."
• "Don’t be dismissive of people’s concerns."
• "Remember that many kinds of fears get lumped under the term 'gentrification.'"
• "Acknowledge that community development hasn’t always gotten anti-displacement protections right in the past."
• "Involve residents in Planning."

And some sample messages, also with more details included in the article:

• 'Disinvestment displaces people too.'
• 'We’re serving people with neighborhood connections.'
• 'More LIHTC won’t necessarily help our renters.'
• 'We have space.'
• 'Stable neighborhoods are more protected against gentrification.'