For a course I am taking on urban renewal I have to define the term “gentrification.” It’s something that has come up here before but never been directly discussed. What is “gentrification” and does it exist in Ann Arbor? Can an urban community be revitalized without gentrifying, or is it an inevitable process? Can the effects of gentrification be lessened through a certain type of city, say, one with a variety of size and age buildings, or rent control, or requiring buildings have low-income apartments? I think the term is a great deal more complex than it might seem at first consideration, and I’d like to hear what you think.

From Merriam-Webster:
“gentrification
Date: 1964
: the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces earlier usually poorer residents”