I used to love looking at the window displays at Leather Tongue Video. The art exhibited there often had this lovely taste of dark whimsy which my senses just gobbled right up… For some reason, I never expected Leather Tongue to disappear from the background that whizzed by as I rode home on my bicycle. And yet it is with grim acceptance that I now walk or ride past the expensive and boring clothing boutique which is now in its place.
Yesterday, my friend Marko asks me if I want the Gentrification update…..Well no, but of course….
“Have you noticed what is missing from Valencia Street?”
And then he informs me that was used to be Casa del Libro, a lefty, spanish language bookstore, is now under construction.
They lost their commercial lease because it the rent recently skyrocketed.
So, who is going to afford the lease now? What is it going to be?
A gay fitness center.
Then Marko goes on to fill me in on the other depressing news:
ATA, the Artists Television Access, which has been known for its cheap film classes and accessible equipment rentals, and support of local filmmakers, just had their rent raised about 600 bucks.
Who else?
Yoruba, the tiny Santeria store on 21st and Valencia is also about to have their rent raised.
Their eviction touches on the angry humor inside that wonders what happens to people who mess with the Santeria store.
It brings some tiny fragment of consolation to daydream about that.
My friend Naomi refuses to take Valencia Street if she can help it. Harvey sings loudly to the customers at the new fancy restaurants on 18th Street, “Go Back to the Marina!” And Marko and I repeatedly ask ourselves, “How can we stop this?”
Gentrification is such a long process that many of us do not even notice is happening until it is too late. People sit on real estate for decades until the time is right to evict all the tenants and double, triple the rent….
And the current wave of Gentrification is happening all over the country. I have heard people complaining about it all over the country. And I wonder, where are these people with money coming from? Who is it that is filling all these expensive, ugly condos? And where are all the people in my neighborhood who can no longer afford it here going to go? And then once they have gone to wherever it is, how long will it before they have made that place interesting enough that gentrifiers will want to kick them out and move in there?
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