Frank Ducote drew our attention to this: David Byrne Starts Making Sense of NYC.
Says Frank: “A more complete and nuanaced look at gentrifiction and its impacts. The last paragraphs are particularly applicable to Vancouver as well as other thriving cities.”
Here they are:
Byrne ends with more questions than answers. He asks, “Can New York change its trajectory a little bit, become more inclusive and financially egalitarian?” He thinks that it can and sees many of the “physical improvements”–byproducts of the city’s affluence–as a great complement to cultural improvements. But how specifically is something he doesn’t deign to say.
We don’t know either. Like Byrne, we still see New York City as one of the best places to live in the world, but also one of the most expensive. We think increased density, coupled with deregulation of building small, will allow for more, less expensive housing, creating one possible path forward.
