If rent countrywide wasn't already high enough, San Francisco's tech boom is killing low-income residents, particularly black families, who can't keep up with surging housing prices, UC Berkeley says. Traditionally known for its rich diversity, San Fran's boom has hit minorities hard, pushing black and Latino families out of the city. While the population has grown, as of 2015, African-Americans account for only 6% of the city's total population. Combining two years of demographic data and case studies from several organizations, UC Berkeley researchers Karen Chapple and Miriam Zuk’s new Urban Displacement Project maps track employment density, percentage of renter and low-income households, non-white populations and even college-educated adult populations in specific cities and counties. The maps have even helped the two develop stages of gentrification (seen below).
From these maps, Karen and Miriam found that neighborhoods with accessible rail transit and pre-1950s housing are quickly losing low-income households as prices skyrocket. From 1990 to 2013, over 25,000 low-income households have left these low- and high-income neighborhoods. More than half were black families, more than any other demographic. Karen and Miriam believe the maps can serve as a warning sign for specific neighborhoods, helping community stakeholders decide what policies to implement. East Palo Alto and Marin City, for example, help their denizens with rent control, just eviction and other policies that keep gentrification at bay.
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