Gentrification or Cooperation: What Is Your Choice?

I walked into a house located at 1000 East Cesar Chavez Street; inside it was dark, dirty, and full of closed doors and hallways. My real estate agent and friend, John Hernandez, came with me. We walked upstairs and found more closed doors. I forced one door open facing west and a raccoon ran out of the room. We both jumped and laughed at the same time. The room was full of dirty clothes, old newspapers, smelly trash, and an old broken bed. It was very hard to breathe inside. I looked at one window that was about 20 feet tall and I pulled the old curtains down and the bright sun poured in, and I saw Downtown Austin. Without hesitation I said, “I’ll take it.” The year was 1995. The house was a 105-year-old Victorian mansion with 3800 square feet of space, and the price was $95,000. That was the beginning of an interesting journey, a love affair with the east side, and a commitment to fight gentrification.

East Austin history is as rich as all of Austin but with a different twist. In the 1940’s East Austin started to become the home of primarily poor Hispanics and African Americans. Small businesses owned by people of color that served the minority populations prospered, including newspapers, restaurants, barber shops, accountants, doctors, and attorneys. The houses were small bungalows with Victorian mansions in between them. For the longest time East Austin was a haven for these families and their businesses. Here, segregation was very vivid but the comfort of the surroundings, friends, and families made the neighborhood feel safe. For many years, East Austin was neglected, forgotten, and underserved by elected officials and city leaders.

The year I bought my property, East Austin was considered a very dangerous area. If you had no business being there, which was the case of most of the population in Austin, you simply did not go. In fact, most of the Austin population was not even familiar with the east side of Interstate Highway 35, but they knew that poor “Mexicans and Blacks” lived there.

Throughout the years there were rumors that wealthy people were buying properties and leasing them back to those families. The east community was concerned but still could not understand what was going on since the people that sold their properties did not provide any information. In 1999 the Travis Central Appraisal District raised everyone’s property taxes by at least 30%. People were concerned about losing their homes because they could not afford to pay their taxes. At that moment, East Austin the community knew something was definitely happening. The Austin City Council under the leadership of Mayor Kirk Watson appointed a group of East Austin community leaders to head a planning process with the charge of creating a plan for the future of East Austin. The request for the plan came a little too late. By that time the exchange of ownership of properties was moving at a rapid pace.

The dictionary defines gentrification as “the restoration and upgrading of deteriorated urban property by middle-class or affluent people, often resulting in displacement of lower-income people.” In other words, gentrification displaces long residing poor families from their neighborhoods to create new living spaces for the wealthy. A lot of these families are not aware of their property’s value and sell their homes at a lower price, and because the income of the sale is not enough to purchase another property, they either have to rent or buy a house outside the city limit. It is important to point out that gentrification not only displaces families, but it also destroys the character and history of a specific community creating a new urban character and sense of community.

The average value of a house in the year 2000 with 1200 square footage in the 78702 zip code was approximate $57,000. Today the average value of a home with the same square footage is $270,000. Currently, http://www.ziprealty.com/ is advertising five houses in the market for over $500,000. The highest one is advertised with a value of over $750,000. The same site is advertising over 20 condominiums with the highest price being $299,000 and the lowest $229,000. Small houses are now sitting right next to either an urban upscale house with all the luxuries or a condominium complex of 3 to 5 floors.

These changes are not only challenging for the community, but also for the city. Because of the new structures and the new high density in the area, the city now needs to provide new roads, improved utilities, state of the art technology, and urban transportation to decrease traffic. New businesses are making East Austin their home and killing the old small mom & pop shops. Affluent residences are the new neighborhood leadership while the old school residences are trying to survive and maintain their voice. Henry McGee W. Jr., explains the following on his essay called "Seattle's Central District, 1990-2006: integration or displacement?”

“Harlem in New York City, Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, to name but a few, have all seen once-shunned "Negro" areas populated by the children of the "white-flyers," who themselves crave the proximity, the convenience, and the "hip-Hess" of living close to downtowns where they work and play. Ironically, this process commenced around the time of the Civil Rights Movement, or as it "wound down," but it is increasingly a reality of twenty-first century urban America. Traditionally the most marginalized of all of the nation's marginalized, more and more African Americans are moving out of the urban cores and into the inner suburbs.”

In a short period of time, East Austin has changed and it will never be the same. We do not have the same character; we are losing the culture; the small businesses are closing; and the old families are moving out. Elizabeth Kirkland explains in her essay called “What's race got to do with it? Looking for the racial dimensions of gentrification”

“Displacement is the most notable consequence of gentrification, and is generally understood as the process "whereby current residents are forced to move because they can no longer afford to reside in the gentrifying neighborhoods" (Freeman, 2005, p. 463), or, as alternatively defined, "when pressures on the housing market from affluent groups create inflated rents and prices which can push out the low paid or unpaid over time" (Atkinson, 2000a, p. 307). Gentrification, as distinguished from urban renewal, occurs relatively gradually, effecting a slow reconfiguration of the residential and consumptive aspects of a neighborhood, and displacing residents who cannot afford rising rents, rising property taxes, and higher costs of more upscale businesses, or who get evicted by landlords acting on the increasing exchange value (Perez, 2004).”

Gentrification is not stoppable, but it can be controlled. After the 2000 Gentrification Study took place, the City Council created several ordinances to protect the residents in East Austin, including new zoning change procedures, limitations of the use of land, and a series of incentives for the developers to create affordable housing. The city also created a program for residences to obtain loans, grants, and other financial assistance for regular maintenance of their properties. The Travis Appraisal District also created a series of workshops for the business and residential property owners to educate them about current property values, sales trends, and property rights. Most importantly, the community, businesses, and non-profits are working together to maintain the fabric of the neighborhood and to create an environment to communicate with the developers to look for win-win strategies before the design and construction phase of new structures.

Gentrification is not all negative. Thanks to the new developments, we now enjoy a greater diversity of services and businesses and the ensuing new job opportunities for the residents. At the end of this month, East Austin will be one of the few Austin areas with two rail stops. Crime in East Austin has come down. The city has also made investments on the area such, as new street signage and better street lighting. This has changed the flow of some of the major streets to increase mobility. East 11th and East 7th streets can apply for grants to renovate the façade of the properties; 7th street is one of the official corridors to the international airport, creating traffic and visibility for the East Austin businesses, and a new commission (Austin Revitalization Authority) was created by neighbors to watch and provide comments to any development, site plans, or zoning changes on the east 11th and 12th streets corridor.

Although the City has taken some steps, the city officials, the residents, the developers, and other affected parties are still struggling to find a balance between gentrification and a sustainable community. The new ordinances, the ARA board, and the city incentives are all good examples of initial steps. However, none of these activities are correcting years of gentrification and neglect to the old residents in the East Austin neighborhoods, since those activities are useful primarily for the business community. How can we make this area a striving community and maintain the diversity of the residents, architecture and businesses? This objective might seem difficult, but it is doable.

First and most importantly, we need to open talks between the city officials, the residents, and the developers. We also need to communicate with the leaders of the environmental, historic, and business communities. Everyone has a stake in the process; therefore, it is important to hear everyone’s concerns and possible solutions. I believe that a Design Workshop meeting is the first step to brainstorm solutions. A Design Workshop is a one-day meeting with the objective to create a plan for desirable urban growth. During this meeting, the community is divided into groups, and everyone is given an opportunity to design and designate areas as green spaces, high- and low-density developments, common areas, multi-modal transportation corridors, low income housing, transportation patterns, etc. During this meeting we can explore several scenarios and study the environmental, social, economic, and financial effects of the proposed solutions.

Secondly, we need to look for creative funds within the private and public sector. Some examples of funding that can be immediately implemented include:

1. At the city level, for every zoning change a fee can be charged specifically for a special community fund budget to create common areas for the residents, such as parks, playgrounds, and community gardens. This fund will be used to purchase the land and develop and maintain the areas.

2. East Austin can be designated as a Historic District. Creating such a district will benefit the current owners of houses and structures with a historic value. Benefits such as property tax discounts, loans and grants to renovate and maintain the structures, increments in heritage tourism, additional income for the local businesses, and increase of the property values, are just a few examples of the advantages of the Historic District designation. Overall, these actions will impact the entire local economy by multiplying the number of jobs available in our city, diversifying the business community, and increasing the sales tax revenues by visitors coming to our city.

3. East Austin can also be designated as an Arts District due to its history and the continued development of new industries related to creativity, arts, and music. Creating the Arts District will provide a mechanism for the city to designate a portion of the collection of taxes into arts-related activities, such as construction and remodeling of structures for museum and theater spaces, coordination of special events, and special funding for training for the arts community that conducts business in the East side.

4. Finally, the East Austin community should also be designated as a hub for small business. Small businesses have unique challenges and needs. Several non-profits that serve the small, minority- and women-owned businesses are already located in East Austin. By creating a business resource center in the east side as well as a business incubator, more small business owners will have an incentive to move to this area and contribute with their taxes and job opportunities. Moreover, having a support system that assists in the areas of training, loans, and office spaces would provide some of the most needed resources for the success of small business.

These strategies can be implemented fairly quickly. Creating the Arts, Small Business, and Historic Districts will not add an additional line item to our current city budget and the city will get benefits from the federal and state government including “Federal Stimulus Dollars” available through CBG block grants. The zoning overlays and construction standards will provide a clear direction to the developer community about the new growth that the east community is seeking. The additional fees for zoning changes will also come from the permits processed at the city for new construction on the east side. We are getting ready to elect a new mayor and several city council seats are open for election too. This is a golden opportunity to unify the East Austin community and select the new city representatives that will support the ideas explained above. East Austin represents a very diverse community; we need to stop the uncontrolled gentrification of this area because it will disintegrate a very important fabric of Austin. We need to work together to avoid the continued displacement of the residents of East Austin. This area is a very important part of what makes Austin unique. We should not let East Austin become condo haven, because that will destroy the historic architectural structures and displace the current residents of the area.

Some of the solutions might have consequences that community members feel negatively about. For example, declaring East Austin a Historic District will bring a new set of restrictions to any renovations done to the historical properties, but the property tax savings, the increase of property value, and the opportunity to apply for grants can still make the Historic District very desirable and advantageous for the residents. The creation of the Arts District might also have some opposition due to the additional tax burden, but the taxes would come from the hotel tourism taxes, so it would not affect the local residents at all. Besides, an active Arts District increases tourism, benefiting just about any business that serves this market and increasing the tax revenues for our city. And finally, some business community leaders might feel that we have provided enough funding for the small, minority- and women-owned businesses, but by creating a good description of the small business classification, this district could benefit everyone who has a small business or is thinking of opening one.

Creating strategies that control the gentrification of East Austin not only benefits the current residents, but also enhances the entire quality of life in the Austin community. The investment is minimal compared to the gains that everyone will enjoy. East Austin can become a hub for small businesses, the arts, and the current neighbors. We need to unify our voices, create an action plan, communicate with others, and express our opinions and needs. We are at the perfect time to do so. The economic downfall is a great opportunity to create new businesses and solutions. The election of the mayor and city council gives us the chance to choose our new representatives, and the need to maintain our history will bring new federal funds to keep up with deteriorating structures.

Are you ready to take action?

Works Cited

City of Austin. Gentrification Committee Report. 14 June 2001. 1 Mar 2009 <http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/housing/downloads/gentrification.pdf>

Kirkland, Elizabeth. "What's race got to do with it? Looking for the racial dimensions of gentrification." The Western Journal of Black Studies 32.2: 18.13.

McGee, Henry W., Jr. "Seattle's Central District, 1990-2006: integration or displacement?." The Urban Lawyer 39.2: 167.90.

Travis County Appraisal District. Travis County Property Information. 2008. Travis.1 Mar. 2009 <http://www.traviscad.org/tcad_search.php?mode=situs&kind=real>

Alain Locke’s Vision for the Future

Throughout the centuries we have defined and redefined the names to call someone with a dark skin color. Even today, I can see the stress of the speaker when he or she needs to make a reference to a group of “Blacks” or “African Americans.” In the past, controversy happened when someone in a public position called someone Negro, but I have also heard people complaining because they were called African American. We have the same issue with the Hispanic or Latino or Mexican American or Chicano or Spanish Speaker or Mexican or Afro-Hispanic. Who are we? The name is just a name, but does that matter? The name shows the exterior but who are we deep inside? Who do we connect with?

Alain Locke’s essay, The New Negro, is fascinating because it not only describes the Black community from the exterior point of view, but most importantly from the interior point of view. He looks deep inside and presents a different perspective of what this community really is and what it’s capable of doing. “By shedding the old chrysalis of the Negro problem we are achieving something like a spiritual emancipation.” (985) Self-worth and self-determination are the keys to this new class of black citizens. The New Negro was written in 1925 but after close to 85 years, are today’s African Americans a good representation of this new Negro class? Or do we still have some of the old Negro still alive in the 21st century? Has society provided the right tools to allow the old Negro to become the new Negro?

“The thinking Negro even has been induced to share this same general attitude, to focus his attention on controversial issues, to see himself in the distorted perspective of a social problem.” (Alain Locke, 985)

Slavery has ended, but we still see the poverty, the lack of opportunity, the low quality education and health care offered to the minority populations. Is the black community free? Legally they are, but mentally not all are. Austin’s black population has been dropping every year. In 2006, the City of Austin’s Council decided to research the reasons for this reduction. The name of the initiative was: The African American Quality of Life, Addressing Community Needs Together. Areas such as arts, housing, health care, education, employment and economic opportunity were some of the topics at these community forums. The results demonstrated that African Americans have a lower standard of living compared to the other citizens in Austin. “The African American community informed City leaders that they were experiencing a different standard of living than other Austinites. After listening the concerns, the City Demographer conducted a study that confirmed African Americans trailed other ethnic groups in many socioeconomic areas.”

Locke must have thought while writing his essay that by now the black community would be competing on an equal level playing field, that the black community would be enjoying wealth, knowledge, political power, etc. And although we now have our first African American president we still have a long way to go to create that equality in some of the most important areas as it is referenced within the City of Austin’s African American Quality of Life Initiative.

So who is to blame that Locke’s new Negro is not a universal concept? I believe that it’s a combination of the community, the government, and society. “The thinking Negro even has been induced to share this same general attitude, to focus his attention on controversial issues, to see himself in the distorted perspective of a social problem.” (985) The government has been very slow to support the advancement of the black community: the social services are provided in a setting that promotes poverty, the education level at areas where the majority of the population are minorities are not compatible with areas of affluent neighborhoods, the urban communities lack side walks, clean streets, reliable Internet services, etc. The society has decided to support light agendas with apparent support to the black community, but which don’t really make a difference in their lives, services such as the “soup kitchen” at the corner of San Marcos and Cesar Chavez, which provides a needed service to feed the poor but no education classes, no job opportunities, and no housing. But I think most detrimental is the lack of mental readiness of some members of this community, the lack of ambition, dream, and support among its own people.

“Recall how suddenly the Negro spirits revealed themselves; suppressed for generations under the stereotypes of Wesleyan hymn harmony, secretive, half-ashamed, until the courage of being natural brought them out – and behold, there was folk music. Similarly the mind of the Negro seems suddenly to have slipped from under the tyranny of social intimidation and to be shaking off the psychology of imitation and implied inferiority.” (985)

In 2008, my company landed a new client, a non-profit organization located in the East side of Austin. “The organization in an incubator of artistic expression representing the African Diaspora and is dedicated to the production of transformational and accessible works for the enrichment of the community.” During the summer of 2008 the organization created a festival showcasing black artists in the areas of dance and performance. Several organizations were called to assist in promoting the one-of-a-kind event in Austin. Organizations such as KAZI, Nokoa, and Huston Tillotson University among others were asked to help. HTU was one of the few that did not support the promotional efforts. Does this action promote the new Negro agenda?

Locke’s idea of the future new Negro environment was probably like Harlem in New York back in the earlier part of the 20th century. The community was diverse, creative, and supported by its members. Perhaps he thought of many communities across America with the same characteristics: “In Harlem, Negro life is seizing upon its first chances for group expression and self determination.” East 11th and 12th street areas of Austin were that kind of niche in the 1960’s. The jazz and blues scene was booming with great musicians playing frequently at the Victory Grill and other places alike. “From the late 1920s to the late 1960s, Austin’s East 11th and 12th Streets boasted a Chitlin Circuit scene showcasing local blues and jazz talent as well as touring acts like in the 1920s such as the great Satchmo Louis Armstrong to R&B artists in the 1950s like Ike & Tina Turner and the 60s the greatest of B.B. King and Bobby Blue Bland.” But now East 11th and 12th have become a different kind of community with new buildings taking over the historic structures and property taxes rising forcing the African American community move out due to the gentrification process.

Two years ago a group of community leaders organized the only Black festival in Austin called the Urban Festival. The festival brings musicians and singers from the national and local scene. The organization was spotless, the publicity was abundant, and the cost was very affordable ($15.00 per ticket). The event is an all day festival for the entire family. Last year I went to the Urban Festival with great anticipation and excitement, the occasion was a high class event, but the community did not support the activity. Very few people went.

I think that the new Negro is still sheltered in the old Negro. I believe that many of today’s African Americans are still living in slavery, but a slavery that is deeper than the chains, because is in their hearts and conscious. “Lacking self-understanding, we have been almost as much of a problem to ourselves as we still are to others.” (985) Success, education, and opportunities have not reached the majority of the black population. Only a few, “the talented tenth,” enjoys wealth, arts, and economic status and only a few have the chance to live well and enjoy a satisfactory career. But that few should take charge and leadership to change the norm and assist others to do well by providing the health services that are necessary to live well, a high class education to lower drop out rates, and business opportunities so more businesses are created.

The African American community continues to challenge itself in creating opportunities to others, but they can not do it alone; first the people who need the most help need to have a winning attitude, the government needs to do a better job providing the services that the community needs, and the society needs to learn that when you reference a black or African American you are actually making a reference to a person and, therefore, the label is not necessary.

Works Cited

"African American Quality of Life." Apr 2008. City of Austin. 2 Apr 2009. http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/aaql/downloads/AAQL_final_report_2008.pdf

"About ProArts." ProArts Collective. Apr 2008. ProArts Collective. 3 Apr 2009. http://www.proartsaustin.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=5&Itemid=53

"The Historic Victory Grill." 3 Apr 2009. http://www.historicvictorygrill.org/history.htm

Locke, Alain “The New Negro.” The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. Eds. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Nellie Y. McKay. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2004. 983-93.

Keep on Pedaling

I woke up this morning with great anticipation. I had a great ride yesterday and completed my goal of 36 miles and I felt great! The ride was beautiful, the weather was perfect, and the scenery was breath taking. So my expectations for this morning’s ride were high.


I got ready at the parking lot of Jack and Adams, and the plan was to ride 20 miles from downtown to South Austin all the way to Akins High School. I have done this ride before and is 9 miles going up the hill. Not an easy one for me.

Starting my ride on the first hill my chain got out of place, that settled the tone for the entire ride. I was behind and fortuneless I kept my self behind for the rest of the ride. I hear from yesterday that the wind factor would be difficult today, but I decided not to pay attention and I kept on going.

The wind gusted to over 20 miles per hour. The whole ride was very scary for me. I was afraid to fall going down the hills, I was afraid of the hills going up, I was afraid of the traffic and the cars, I was afraid to cross the major interceptions such as Ben While and Slaughter Lane, I lacked confident of my bike and my own straight to keep up, and I was terrified by the wind.

This is a “no drop” ride, meaning that there is always some one with you. At this particular ride it was Draw from Jack and Adams who led everyone. Though out the ride, I was having the hardest time and my interior voice kept on telling me to quit and to go home. So why try?” And through out the ride Draw was telling me, “you are doing great, watch your petal technique, look behind, change your gear.”

At one point going from Akins High School to the first main intersection at Slaughter lane and First Street, we needed to pass this very long bridge. The wind got stronger and no matter how much I tried I could no go faster than 8 miles per hour, but what it really scared me was the wind against my bike, moving it from left to right and completely getting my bike out of control.

I got very stress out and nervous; I started to break and my idea was to stop, get out of my bike, and let some one pick me up after the ride. Draw noticed it, and he said “keep on pedaling; even with this strong wind you will keep a better control and you will finish the ride.” Keep on pedaling, was the message that stock in my head.

How many times we are working toward our goals and we have our support friends cheering us up and we have our other friends who also love us but can not understand our drive? Do you have some of those? I know I do. This is what they say to me: “you are doing too much,” “men are scare of women with strong wills,” and “maybe you should take a break.” You see, none of these advises are really bad per say. They mean well for sure, but the underline effect is tremendously negative. There is a big difference between “keep on pedaling” or “break and stop.”

When you are wondering if you can keep going who do you prefer to listen to? The discourage voice? Or, the encourage one? When we are at a weak point and ready to quit, is hard to listen to "keep going" for sure but we know in our hart that we must keep going.

To keep on pedaling is what I want you to choose. Draw said it this morning, "even when is hard and you are going slowly, you are still moving forward and you will finish." I completed my 20 miles this morning last. I was very upset with my performance, but every one from the team was cheering me up and with that kind of support I began to feel great and satisfied with my accomplishment.

Please remember, when you feel that the wind is pushing you back, choose to keep on pedaling. Believe me, the finish line is a sweet spot to be in even if you are the last one to make it there.

Keep on Pedaling!