gentrification
noun

- the restoration and upgrading of deteriorated urban property by middle-class or affluent people, often resulting in the displacement of lower-income people

verb
gentrify

(American Heritage Dictionary)

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DID YOU KNOW?

Historically, the term "gentry" referred to English landowners, a class of people ranked just below nobility. Today, it usually refers to the upper-middle class. As young, single professionals returned to the cities to live, the English referred to the process as "gentrification." Their occupations are generally professional, technical, or managerial.

Gentrification can be viewed two ways as seen in the following definitions:

- the conversion, over a period of years, of less developed and less desirable districts into thriving neighbourhoods occupied by professionals and young families.

- the displacement of lower-income residents in a neighbourhood by higher-income residents, generally occurring when an older neighbourhood is revitalised.

The fact is that both definitions are correct. However, each places a different emphasis on what the impact is (thriving neighbourhoods versus displacement).

Sources: Neighborhood Revitalization and the Postindustrial City: A Multinational Perspective, by Dennis E. Gale; Dealing with Neighborhood Change: A Primer on Gentrification and Policy Choices, by Maureen Kennedy and Paul Leonard)

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Practice OWAD in a conversation:

"The GENTRIFICATION of London's East End has created many new jobs and improved tourism."