Posted below are a tentative set of research questions, which will both provide a basis for my senior thesis/capstone project. They will additionally guide my research into the relationship between transit and gentrification in Seattle over the next three months, conducted in conjunction with my independent study and research into these issues in Portland.
- Descriptive: What changes in household income, racial demographics, and educational attainment have occurred in Seattle by census tract over the past twenty years? What changes (in density and the markers of gentrification) have occurred near light rail stations in the Seattle area since the system opened in 2009? How do these changes compare to those seen in neighboring census tracts? Which neighborhoods were redlined through the 1960s? Is there a relationship between transit investment and real estate development in Seattle?
- Explanatory: How well does the rent gap theory explain the gentrification seen in the Central District and Columbia City, among other historically disinvested and redlined neighborhoods with sizable minority/disadvantaged populations? How do Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan for growth and its policy of concentrating development in urban villages shape gentrification?
- Evaluative: How do the rates of displacement compare between rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods and “control” neighborhoods? How do existing residents, both inside and outside designate urban villages, view development and gentrification? Are there noted, concrete negative cultural impacts of gentrification in Seattle neighborhoods?
- Instrumental: How effective has inclusionary zoning been at providing affordable housing and maintaining socioeconomic diversity within gentrifying neighborhoods? How effective is increasing housing supply in terms of maintaining affordability and minimizing displacement? How effective have community land trusts been at minimizing displacement?