Contemporary gentrification in old‐industrial and post‐industrial cities Brian Doucet [Note: this is a draft paper. Please do not cite without consulting with the author] Abstract The main aim of this paper is to better understand the differences between gentrification in post‐industrial cities – those that have thrived in the knowledge, finance and creative era – and old‐industrial cities – those that have struggled to make the transition away from manufacturing and industrial activities. Much of the theoretical and conceptual literature on gentrification comes from the former, while this is not surprising as gentrification originated in cities such as London, New York and Toronto, more conceptual and theoretical attention is needed on the differences in spatial form, built environment and conflicts which can exist in different types of cities. This paper will describe and analyse the similarities and differences between various forms of contemporary gentrification in old‐industrial and post‐ industrial cities. It will build conceptual spatial models of gentrification in these types of cities. This exploratory paper should be seen as a starting point towards more comparative research along this path and it will conclude by highlighting several gaps in the academic literature which have been uncovered by this study. Key words: gentrification, housing, gentrification wedge, old‐industrial cities, post‐industrial cities Dr. Brian Doucet Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences Department of Human Geography and Planning PO BOX 80.115 3508 TC, Utrecht The Netherlands +31 30 253 2966
[email protected] www.briandoucet.com 1 INTRODUCTION When I teach my first year geography students about what geography is and what geographers do, one of the first exercises I give them is to observe the landscape around them and question why things are where they are.