This article is 6 years old

Opinion

Gentrification Alters Fourth St Ambience

I immigrated to the United States from Pakistan with my parents and my younger sibling almost eight years ago when I was just nine years old. When we were looking for an apartment many people told us to rent in Berkeley because stores would be accessible by foot so we didn’t need to worry about owning a car. After three months we found an apartment on Eighth Street in Berkeley, which is in an area with many Pakistani and Indian stores and restaurants.

Having access to the many stores in our area, including those on Fourth Street, made living a lot easier for my family. If my brother and I wanted to go get ice cream, we only had to walk five minutes to Fourth Street to buy some delicious scoops.

I was shocked to learn that this beautiful area was only a few minutes away from my house. Fourth street was and is a very gorgeous place. For people who are immigrants or tourists new to America, the neighborhood near Fourth Street is a great place to live because everything they need is a few minutes away. Yoga classes, parks, grocery stores, clothes shops, the Berkeley Marina, numerous restaurants with delicious food, and much more are all within walking distance.

Recently my brother and I were walking to Fourth Street and we noticed construction happening everywhere. The grocery stores and restaurants were mostly gone. Many of the other local buildings and businesses had vanished as well, and new buildings were being constructed in their place. All these local businesses were being pushed out by real estate developers. The new buildings were overwhelmingly turning into apartments which changed the feeling of the entire area. Fourth Street was starting to look very different than it did when I had first moved.

The rent in the Fourth Street area has been increasing since the new building developments started. The increase in rent is causing many people to move to different areas because they can no longer afford to live there. Some people say gentrification is bad in this area, and it is, but some of the culture of the Fourth Street area persists.

Now when I walk to Fourth Street it no longer feels the same. It feels like a very different place than when my family moved to Berkeley all those years ago. There are not the same Pakistani and Indian stores that used to fill the area. While the feeling of Fourth Street is changing, there are not enough apartments in Berkeley. Because of its proximity to the UC Berkeley campus, these new apartments can be used by students who need housing. Their construction will increase the population of the Fourth Street area which will help businesses thrive.  This change may impact Fourth Street in a positive way. Although Fourth Street is changing, many people still love it. While these changes may be hard to grapple with, the community surrounding Fourth Street still has a vibrant future.