Understanding Inequity Reproduction:A Case Study in SW, Washington, DC

Washington, DC
Washington, DC experienced the most intense form of gentrification among US cities from 2000-2017. More than 20,000 African Americans were displaced in this period while low income populations were increasingly concentrated in many majority-minority areas (Shifting Neighborhoods, 2019; Gentrification and Divestment, 2020 ). Around twenty years ago, it began to lay the groundwork for subsequent gentrification. The Anacostia Waterfront Initiative (AWI) was a partnership that was formalized in 2003 between nearly two dozen District and federal agencies to revitalize the waterfront communities along the Anacostia River and Washington Channel to make room for high-density mixed-use and a Major League Baseball stadium (Anacostia Waterfront, 2003). A key priority was the redevelopment of a Capper-Carrollsburg public housing in Southeast, DC, which caused more than 700 households to be displaced.

In 2006, DC adopted its modern planning document known as the Comprehensive Plan, which tended to approve development into certain low-income neighborhoods while protecting affluent areas from greater density (Baca, 2019). The implication was clear, “as the Comprehensive Plan is successfully implemented, it will have many far-reaching effects on everyone who lives or works in the District (DC Municipal Code, 2020)” It also established guiding principles and policies on twelve elements including housing, economic development, community services, and recreation. Notably, health was not an area of focus in the document. While the rest of the city was rapidly increasing in density, affluent areas largely remained confined to single family housing. That preservation reinforced the racial demarcation line in housing dating to historical redlining practices in Washington, DC, while putting market pressure in other neighborhoods. (continued below)

To our understanding, there are six peer-reviewed studies on gentrification in Washington, DC. Two ethnographic analyses of the Shaw/U Street and Columbia Heights neighborhoods captured longtime residents’ social and economic marginalization and tensions with newcomers over shared spaces and resources (Hyra, 2017; Maher, 2015). Holt et al. (2020) studied the psychosocial effects of gentrification with Black men, concluding that the resultant social marginalization, reduced sense of community, loss of control, and self-blame warrant public health attention. Two additional qualitative studies involving longtime and new residents found a lack of social interaction between discordant economic groups and rising tensions over the use of public spaces and socio-cultural expressions (Grier and Perry, 2018; Helmuth, 2019). Green et al. (2017) conducted surveys and interviews in Columbia Heights, finding differences in the perceived value of community services and establishments. Little is known about the association between gentrification and physical health in Washington, DC.

Southwest, Washington, DC

The Southwest waterfront community is a major epicenter of gentrification in Washington, DC. It is a historic community dating to the 18th century and is located southwest of the United States Capitol. One distinguishing feature is its racial and economic diversity. Residents are roughly equally distributed among homeowners, public housing residents, and market renters. Whites make up the majority, but the community has historically been majority-minority. While the overall Black population declined by 500 from 2010-2018, the White population increased by 2,500 (Policy Map, 2010-2019). The largest gains in the African American population have been in income brackets greater than $125,000, obscuring total Black displacement (Southwest Voice, 2020).

Deep public subsidies and the selling of public land cheaply supported public-private partnerships to construct three regional sports and entertainment centers in the area. Consistent with prior literature, Southwest’s proximity to the central business district or downtown makes it vulnerable to gentrification (Timberlake, 2017). Critics claim Southwest achieved “gentrified” status by violating fair housing laws (Southwest Voice, 2020). A DC government report supports this assertion, “Residential developments that require city review and approval are approved without any effort to promote compliance with the Fair Housing Act” (DCHD, 2019). More than half of Southwest is within “Opportunity Zones,” portending a hardening of Black displacement. In addition, the District of Columbia Housing Authority’s plan to redevelop Greenleaf apartments — a 15-acre 493 unit public housing site containing considerable family housing — risks additional low-income displacement. Residents’ perceptions of neighborhood change or adverse effects are unknown. Southwest’s only health clinic closed in 2017.

Southwest experienced one of the earliest and most traumatic forms of land redevelopment when nearly 560 acres were cleared, resulting in the displacement of 23,000 residents in a predominately African American community (Russello Ammon, 2009). Known as urban renewal, this approach was synonymous with neighborhood change throughout American cities in the 1960s and 1970s—typically in minority and White ethnic neighborhoods (Teaford, 2000). A five-year follow-up study of relocated individuals from urban renewal in Southwest showed a profound sense of loss, high degree of anomie, and barriers to social adjustment (Thursz, 1966). Although the neighborhood eventually recovered its diverse population, the legacy of urban renewal has cast a long shadow that has drawn parallels to the present day. No sooner had the Southwest urban renewal plan officially ended in the late 1990s, new efforts began to “renew” Southwest once more —the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative (2003), Southwest Waterfront Plan Approval Resolution of 2003, the District of Columbia Anacostia Waterfront Corporation Act (2004), and the Comprehensive Plan (2006 and 2011). Southwest had long been considered a quiet and modest neighborhood until recent development, it did not fit the Hoover and Vernon model of being downgraded.

The preponderance of public housing is a key characteristic of Southwest. Constructed during urban renewal, this area is one of the highest concentrations of Black poverty in the U.S. today. Of the nearly 74,000 Census tracts in the U.S., the tract containing Southwest’s public housing ranks 129th for Black poverty (Southwest Voice, 2020). Neighborhoods of concentrated poverty isolate residents from the resources and networks they need to reach their potential and deprive the larger community of the neighborhood’s human capital (Tigges, 1998). Concentrated poverty is associated with crime, drug use, delinquency, poor educational outcomes, psychological distress, and health problems (HUD, 2011). It has been closely linked with poorer mental health outcomes , maternal health and pregnancy outcomes , malnutrition, and obesity, among other health concerns (Funk et al, 2012; Tanya Nagahawatte and Goldenberg, 2008; Tanumihardjo et al., 2007). However, Southwest has historically and continues to be resource-rich - transportation amenities, access to clinical services (the local clinic returned in 2021), access to parks and the waterfront, and strong social and family ties. All factors that are protective factors against the health effects of poverty.