“They're Colonizing My Neighborhood”: (Perceptions of) Social Mix in Canada

Abstract

In recent years, urban neighborhoods in many Western nations have undergone neighborhood restructuring initiatives, especially in public housing developments. Regent Park, Canada's oldest and largest public housing development, is a neighborhood currently undergoing ‘neighborhood revitalization’ based on the social mix model. One tenet of this model is the idea that original public housing residents are benefiting from interactions with middle class residents. Based on qualitative interviews and ethnographic observations with original housing residents as well as new middle‐class homeowners, we examine whether cross‐class interactions actually occur “on the ground” in Regent Park. By examining an iteration of the model that differs with respect to the direction of resident movement—that is, the revitalization of Regent Park involves more advantaged residents buying into the once low‐income neighborhood, as opposed to providing lower‐income residents with housing vouchers to move out of the community (and into more affluent neighborhoods across the city)—our study provides a unique contribution to the existing research on social mix. In particular, our research examines whether the direction of this resident movement has any distinct or demonstrable impact on: (1) the daily perceptions, attitudes, and actions of original and new residents, and (2) the nature of cross‐class interactions. Second, unlike the vast majority of studies done in Europe and the United States, which are conducted “postrevitalization,” we examine the effects of neighborhood revitalization as the process unfolds.

Managing Difference: White Parenting Practices in Socioeconomically Diverse Neighborhoods

“…This article makes empirical contributions to research on neighborhood social processes concerning the role white, middleclass parents play in creating and sustaining neighborhood-level micro-segregation in two racially distinct mixed-income neighborhoods. Results from this study also contribute to a growing body of literature challenging the social mix hypothesis-that is, the belief that poor residents derive social or economic benefits from their higher-income neighbors (Buccerius, Thompson and Beradi 2017;Tach 2009).…”

Housing Stigmatization: A General Theory

“…Overall, symbolic boundaries between homeowners and non-homeowners appear to be pervasive, with homeowners' real or perceived equivalent structural position limiting cross-tenure mixing (Arthurson, 2010;Bucerius, Thompson, & Berardi, 2017;Kemp, 2011;Palmer, Ziersch, Arthurson, & Baum, 2004;van Eijk, 2012;Vassenden, 2014). There are some important caveats here.…”

When Heritage Meets Creativity: A Tale of Two Urban Development Strategies in Kampong Glam, Singapore

“…Scholars have also charged that the ambitious recent endeavor to transform Toronto's Regent Park from a low‐income to “mixed” community threatens the neighborhood's storied ethnic and racial diversity and strong social ties despite official assurances otherwise (Bucerius et al. ). In all such cases, developers and local governments are criticized for fully embracing strategies for upscale development that fall short of preserving meaningful cultural place identity.…”

“…The gentrification of the historically African-American communities of Shaw/U Street in Washington, D.C., and Downtown Brooklyn in New York City, for example, illustrates the difficulties and limitations of preserving local culture while pursuing redevelopment pitched to middle-class newcomers (Curran 2007;Hyra 2017;Lees 2003;Mason 2004;Zukin et al 2009). Scholars have also charged that the ambitious recent endeavor to transform Toronto's Regent Park from a low-income to "mixed" community threatens the neighborhood's storied ethnic and racial diversity and strong social ties despite official assurances otherwise (Bucerius et al 2017). In all such cases, developers and local governments are criticized for fully embracing strategies for upscale development that fall short of preserving meaningful cultural place identity.…”