The question I receive more than any other is some variation of, “Now that Peoplestown has changed, what will happen to Emmaus House?” People want to know what Emmaus House will do now that Peoplestown has gentrified and looks very different to those visiting the restaurants, coffee shops, and the newly opened Publix down the road. The short answer is that we will continue to do what we’ve done for the past fifty-six years: provide economic opportunity for families and educational enrichment for children and youth. Despite all of the changes, these needs still exist—our help center receives numerous visits each month, and participation in our summer Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools program remains strong.
For me, the term “gentrification” raises the question of what is being gentrified. What is a “neighborhood,” exactly? According to one definition, “the ‘sense of place’ inherent in a neighborhood is a function of its history, buildings, natural features, landscape, and people. The feeling of belonging to a community is created through familiar, everyday social interactions within a localized setting.”
Peoplestown has been a tight-knit neighborhood for many years. Its people have endured displacement brought about by misguided urban planning and the construction of the downtown connector, Fulton County Stadium, and Turner Field. The neighborhood has held on through it all, and community members have continued to care for each other, united by a shared bond and common sense of history.
We’re now witnessing the disintegration of that shared history in Peoplestown. Two major forces are responsible for this change: the redevelopment of the Georgia State Stadium area in Summerhill on our northern border and the Beltline on our southern border. Developers have constructed hundreds of new apartments in the past couple of years, and institutional investors have bought many homes once owned by legacy homeowners.
Referring to the Beltline, Dan Immergluck notes in Red Hot City: Housing, Race, and Exclusion in Twenty-first Century Atlanta, “What has often been missing in the enthusiasm for the project, however, is serious, critical analysis about its contribution to gentrification and exclusion—both economic and racial—in the city.”
We see this omission playing out in Peoplestown, as very few new apartments are “affordable” to those living with the effects of material poverty. Hundreds of new residents, all able to pay market rates, have moved into the neighborhood, few of whom have a sense of the rich history that binds people together. Those who remain hardly recognize their community now that many friends have been displaced by increased taxes, stricter code enforcement, and higher rents.
I recently sat with Alison Johnson, founder and executive director of the Housing Justice League (HJL) based in Peoplestown. Alison was born and raised in Peoplestown and has a long history with Emmaus House, once as a staff member and now as a member of our advisory board. We discussed the area’s new restaurants, coffee shops, and other amenities. Alison pointed out that “new resources are not stretched wide enough” to benefit legacy residents with limited financial resources. No one is building with them in mind. These residents often feel like strangers in the neighborhood where many have lived their entire lives.
In The Color of Law, Richard Rothstein emphasizes that gentrification is part of a larger pattern of systemic inequality and housing segregation that was years in the making. He says that the consequences of gentrification include displacement, educational disparities, and community disruption, all of which we see taking place in Peoplestown.
We know that gentrification will continue. People with financial resources will continue to prey on those without the power to resist or fight back. However, that does not mean there is no hope. Rothstein suggests a multifaceted approach focused on affordable housing, equitable development strategies, and policy reforms. None of these approaches, of course, is easy to implement.
The Housing Justice League (HJL) is committed to these three approaches. Its mission statement reads, “We work with renters and homeowners to self-organize and defend their right to remain. We fight to preserve affordable housing, for just living conditions, to prevent gentrification, and to build community power for an Atlanta-wide housing justice movement.” The HJL works towards community autonomy, believing people already invested in a neighborhood can work together for the common good.
The HJL’s latest initiative is the People’s Community Land Trust, designed to preserve affordable home ownership in the community. The Trust has purchased its first property and is rehabbing the existing house. The new homeowner is Ms. Juliet, who, after twenty-seven years of renting her home, faced eviction so the owner could sell. Now, in partnership with the People’s Community Land Trust, she will soon be a homeowner who can take comfort in knowing that her housing is secure.
At the Emmaus House Muriel Lokey Help Center we meet with neighbors daily who face the threat of eviction and displacement. People come to us as a last hope when they’re behind on their rent or mortgage, struggling to remain in their homes. Over the past three years, we’ve received funding from the Stadium Neighborhood Community Trust Fund and other sources, allowing us to distribute over $500,000 to residents. However, after this summer, these Stadium Neighborhood funds will no longer be available, forcing us to find other resources to help our neighbors.
Helping families achieve financial stability is critical and more urgent than ever. Our help center provides a ladder to economic success by stabilizing individuals in crisis and providing opportunities for increased household income through our Supports for Success case management program. We believe all people have a right to safe, affordable housing, access to enough healthy food to feed their families, and a pathway to family-supporting jobs.
The pathway to meaningful work includes access to quality education for children and youth. We believe children need enrichment opportunities beyond the classroom to equip them socially, emotionally, and intellectually to compete in today’s marketplace. That’s why Emmaus House will continue to offer programs like our summer Freedom Schools program and Youth on the Move, our out-of-school-time program for middle and high school students.
Gentrification has not diminished the need for our work. Thousands of people on the south side of Atlanta, including Peoplestown, live with the effects of material poverty. Emmaus House will continue to do as it has done for the past fifty-six years and work with families trying to create better lives for themselves. We are grateful for the many supporters who have made our work possible and continue to trust us with their financial support. We are also thankful for the members of the Peoplestown community who have trusted us and allowed us to work among them for these many years. We don’t take that trust lightly, believing we have a sacred duty to walk with our neighbors.
– Greg Cole, Executive Director of Emmaus House
