A Good Neighborhood

The instigating event of A Good Neighborhood—the Whitman family demolishing an old house and building a large new house next door to the Alston-Holts—reflects the real-life process of gentrification. Gentrification occurs when wealthy people or businesses come into and change areas inhabited by lower-income individuals. Gentrification causes an array of social issues, including displacement, a lack of affordable housing and homelessness, conflict within the community, loss of diversity, and an increase in housing demand in other low-income areas (Contreras, Luis. “The Effects of Gentrification in American Cities.” ArcGIS StoryMaps, 9 June 2021). Gentrification often benefits wealthy individuals, who are able to secure housing or buildings for lower prices than they could in wealthier neighborhoods. The process has a negative impact on those with lower incomes, as the cost of living increases in gentrified areas.

Gentrification is depicted through Brad and the other wealthy families alluded to who are buying older houses, tearing them down, and building extravagant new homes on the lots in Oak Knoll. Some people are razing and rebuilding in Oak Knoll because it is cheaper than buying homes in the neighboring wealthy neighborhood, Hillside. Brad moving into the area has detrimental effects on the environment, as he destroys every tree on his property and ends up killing Valerie’s oak tree. It also creates community conflict between the Whitman and Alston-Holt families and between the families and the larger community, who feel they must take sides.

The author expands the discussion of the environmental impacts of gentrification beyond Brad’s yard and Valerie’s oak tree in a conversation between Valerie and Ellen. Valerie warns that, if left unchecked, the wealthy individuals moving to the area will kill all the trees in the community, and Oak Knoll is known for and values its trees. This reflects real-world concerns, as many argue that neighborhoods and communities are destroyed through the gentrification process.