A Divided Community: A Study of Gentrification of the Lower East Side Community

The Two Bridges Neighborhood Council's 2004 report A Divided Community: A Study of Gentrification of the Lower East Side Community, presented an analysis of demographic, socioeconomic, and housing-related trends in the area based on 1990 and 2000 Census data.

The report provided scientific corroboration for the increasing shortages of affordable housing that residents were experiencing in the East Village, Alphabet City, the Lower East Side, Two Bridges, and Chinatown.

By analyzing demographic trends, the report showed that gentrification, if left unchecked, would force out low-income families of all ethnic and racial backgrounds. A Divided Community underscored the necessity to build more low-income housing in the area, especially in such underdeveloped locations as the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area. [Link to SPURA page on Two Bridges Web Site]

The report and its policy recommendations have been used extensively by urban planners engaged in charting the future of the Lower East Side.

Read the Report (requires Adobe Acrobat reader).