I understand what it is and why it happens, but often when its explained it seems like no one ever gets into how it can be resisted, fought, or even outright prevented.
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It would be a good idea to identify the goals of “preventing gentrification.” Gentrification can be a result of free market forces with property rights in an area where someone is trying to make it “nicer” or “more desirable.” So to prevent it, you either have to infringe on property rights, market forces, or simply prevent an area from becoming more desirable.
A place like Centralia, Pennsylvania is not concerned about gentrification. (look it up)
So you can take active measures to disallow people from buying and selling property. You can also put in things like rent control which often results in underinvestment. So people aren’t forced out because of rental prices. They also don’t enjoy a higher standard of living.
One “solution” which many places have come up with is a requirement for “affordable housing” as percentage of any redevelopment. Something similar might be government assistance to help cover increased rent.
Another idea is to try to increase home ownership in a neighborhood, that way less people are forced out as rents rise.
Gentrification is going to have a set of pros and cons, or maybe a set of winners and losers. This is not unique in economics or politics or life in general. I submit that identity politics makes the issue of gentrification more of a lightning rod than it needs to be.
Peace
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