gentrification

target destination for low-income residents who are being displaced by gentrification in other parts ofthe Bay Area. 74East Palo Alto, a predominantly African American and Latino community adjacent to PaloAlto, Stanford University, and the center of the computer revolution, has long been distressed. Over60 percent of its residents have low incomes, and 17 percent are on public assistance. 75 This smallcommunity sits literally on the other side of the tracks from Silicon Valley, and appears likely to betransformed dramatically in the coming years. Two very large retail, office and hotel developmentswere newly opened or under construction in early 2000 (the time of the authors’ research visit)generating substantial tax revenues that city officials hope will underwrite city services to new andold residents. 76 Several large housing developments are under construction, each of which isprimarily market-rate but each includes some affordable housing units to replace some of theinexpensive housing demolished for the new development. All residents displaced by the newconstruction received relocation expenses and new housing, as mandated by California law. Littledata are available yet on the recent patterns of displacement and turnover among residents of EastPalo Alto’s existing private housing stock, but there is at least anecdotal evidence that more homesare being sold to higher-income newcomers than in the past.The major private sector investment is concurrent with significant philanthropic investmentsfrom the Rockefeller and Hewlett Foundations and the state and federal governments, and therejuvenation effort is embraced by most East Palo Alto residents. While city and community leaderswork hard to remain firmly in charge of the transformation, one can easily imagine how very differentEast Palo Alto is likely to be in just a few years.3. ConclusionRapid economic expansion in Silicon Valley and throughout the 9-county metropolitan area,combined with limited housing development, have produced gentrification in a number of SanFrancisco neighborhoods and pose substantial challenges to communities in cities throughout theregion. The speed and power of these market forces have limited the ability of either localgovernments or community groups to prevent significant displacement in the Mission and otheraffected communities. As the expansion is prolonged, other Bay Area communities includingOakland, East Palo Alto and Vallejo could face substantial challenges in ensuring that local residentscan remain and benefit from the revitalization activity that is undertaken.B. AtlantaUntil recently, the Atlanta metropolitan area experienced rapid growth in suburban and exurbanpopulation and jobs, while the central core experienced population and job reductions and74 Yee and Quiroz-Martinez, p. 15.75 Ibid., Table 1, p. 5.76 Zinko, Carolyne, “Mayor to Tout East Palo Alto’s Route to Self-Sufficiency,” San Francisco Chronicle, March12, 2000, p. A16.49