Jan

17

Crossroads takes on gentrification

January 17, 2007 |

It’s a familiar scene in most US cities…  Artists and other creative types move into into a blighted neighborhood in search of cheap rent, create a vibrant urban neighborhood, and then get driven out when the area’s new popularity drives up property values.

That gentrificiation process is quite visible locally in the Crossroads Arts District.  After much protest, hand-wringing, and negotiaton, the local community has come up with a solution. Buildings housing arts and cultural uses will have property taxes frozen for 10 years, then future increases will be reduced by half for another 15 years.  The plan covers the area between the Loop and Crown Center, from Broadway to Troost.


Comments

3 Comments so far

  1. Tony on January 17, 2007 2:30 pm

    For as much as I make fun, the plan actually sounds like a good idea. I only hope that others around KC (especially the Westside) can copy it for longtime residents. Folks in my part of town may not create “art” but their longtime dedication to the downtown area should be rewarded as well.

  2. BlogKC on January 17, 2007 2:44 pm

    Yes, this would be a great idea for the Westside to pursue. But the community itself will have to push for it. Perhaps Westside Housing our whatever neighborhood association covers the Westside. Don’t expect the city to magically do it on their own.

  3. Hippstar on January 18, 2007 8:24 pm

    Hey, how about this? I’ll move downtown into a loft, start making designer ping pong paddles or something only .005% of the population wants to buy, and then ask for everyone else living in the city to pay my rent?

    I sympathize with the artists’ plight, but I’m not sure why a sculptor should get a rent-controlled loft but not an accountant. If the public actually valued the art as much as the artist, the artist wouldn’t have any trouble paying the taxes.

    I say boot the artists out and let them rejuvinate another part of town. In ten years the yuppies will gentrify that part of town, too. By 2080 the entire city will be great.

    On the other hand, virtually no one else who lives or operates a business downtown gets a 20-year property tax abatement, so why make the artists pay?

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