Recent Streetsblog LA posts about gentrification

In January, 2012, community members "cruise[d] Afro-central down the River Crenshaw," as poet Conney Williams' verse reads, to the base of "Elixir." The brief pilgrimage along the corridor from Coliseum to Stocker for the dedication of Patrick Henry Johnson's mural honored the connections between people, place, and the creative process. Williams read his poem, "Elixir," as part of the dedication ceremony. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

Destination Crenshaw and the Rise of We-Built-this-Place-Making

By Sahra Sulaiman | Feb 8, 2019

Crenshaw turns "insult into opportunity” to reclaim space for the celebration of Black life, culture, and contributions via a 1.3-mile-long open-air "People's Museum"

Redlining, the practice of denying loans to communities of color in the 1930s, was one of many ways segregation was embedded in the DNA of cities and continues to shape their growth and development today. Source: HOLC

Symposium Kicks off “Undesign the Red Line” Exhibit Thursday

By Sahra Sulaiman | Feb 6, 2019 | 9 Comments

"Undesign the Redline" kicks off its Los Angeles residency at LATTC Thursday with a day-long symposium. Exhibit runs through March 31.

The Crenshaw Wall tells the story of the community's resilience, strength, beauty, and power. Someone covered the faces of four female Black Panthers (one of which is in the frame) with swastikas on November 29th. The streetlight was down to make way for the Space Shuttle Endeavor as it moved up Crenshaw in 2012. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

Community Meeting Tonight to Discuss the Vandalism of the Crenshaw Wall

By Sahra Sulaiman | Dec 7, 2018 | 4 Comments

Tonight at 6:30 p.m. at the Kaiser Permanente Baldwin Hills Community Room, community leaders and LAPD will discuss the vandalism of the Crenshaw Wall.

Mariachi musician Luis Valdivia (white suit, center) waits to address the crowd regarding an $800 rent increase he was hit with at a rally at Mariachi Plaza in April, 2017. He stands next to Arturo Ramírez, president of the Organización de Mariachis Unidos de Los Ángeles. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

Rent Stabilization and the Integrity of Vulnerable Ecosystems: Some Last Thoughts on Prop 10

By Sahra Sulaiman | Nov 6, 2018 | 20 Comments

Within a few weeks of buying the building located a block from Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights at the end of 2016, Frank “B.J.” Turner had raised rents on a handful of long-term tenants by between 60 and 80 percent. He had also created a website for the building, re-christened “Mariachi Crossing,” targeting those that […]

This (in-progress) detail by artist Jaime Scholnick will feature in a larger panel of scenes running along one of the underground walls at the Expo/Crenshaw station. Source: Jaime Scholnick

Art, the Crenshaw/LAX Line, and the Stories We (Don’t) Tell at Train Stations

By Sahra Sulaiman | Nov 1, 2018

Given the role public investment can have in reshaping marginalized communities, what responsibilities does Metro have as an entity that seeks to tell stories about the places it moves people through?

The project will straddle Crenshaw Blvd., south of Exposition, at the juncture of the Expo and Crenshaw/LAX Lines. Source: Metro

Project Planned for Lots at Expo/Crenshaw Takes Another Step Forward

By Sahra Sulaiman | Sep 29, 2018 | 2 Comments

Last Thurday, the Metro Board of Directors approved a 14-month Exclusive Negotiation Agreement (ENA) with developer WIP-A, LLC, (a subsidiary of Watt Companies), allowing the project planned for the Metro- and County-owned lots at the Expo/Crenshaw station to take the next step forward. The move is a bit more of a head-scratcher than it might […]

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