The war on gentrification rages on

As cranes continue to dominate the Toronto skyline, there’s an anti-gentrification backlash afoot. Is this more NIMBYism? Or are the protesters right to want something to remain of their character-filled, low-rise memories? It’s not new, but the anti-gentrification sentiment does seem to be heating up.

Over the last month, we’ve seen some pretty hateful signs on Instagram going up in downtown neighbourhoods. The fairly benign “WARNING: Gentrification in progress” (complete with misappropriated City of Toronto logo) is a pretty stark contrast to clearly emotionally charged “DEAR CONDO DWELLERS: Locals hate you. Go F**K yourself.”

King and Queen West and CityPlace have all seen such signs posted. (Seriously? CityPlace? There wasn’t much life there before the dreaded condo dwellers showed up, was there?) This week, they’re showing up in Kensington Market too.

When the subject came up on Reddit, some commenters objected to the idea that Toronto’s “true” residents would ever do such a thing and chalked it up to new “immigrants” from the outer reaches, say Oshawa or Penticton. Others say the biggest NIMBYs in the city are the locals, or that out and out anarchists are just stirring things up.

There are bound to be tensions in a city expanding as rapidly as ours, but there’s certainly a great deal of irony in someone objecting to an unwanted element in “their” neighbourhood by plastering up signs that are in such poor taste, they alone could bring down the property values.

The fact is that about 30% of city residents live in high-rise buildings, and as long as there’s demand for downtown dwellings, condos aren’t going away. Being a snarky, profane jerk isn’t going to change that.

The anti-gentrification movement is just spitting into the wind by setting their sights on condo dwellers who just want to enjoy the same downtown lifestyle they do. Not to mention that such signs display a basic misunderstanding of the forces at work.

Gentrification is not a class war, and those greedy, moustache-twirling developers aren’t villains. Developers would just as happily build in already-established, expensive neighbourhoods with predictable demand.

If those signs actually worked to successfully fight development and cap demand, all we’d see are even higher prices. Those who can afford to will snap up existing units and speed up the gentrification process.

New development is a steam valve for escalating prices, and we know what happens when a steam valve malfunctions — stuff explodes. Not building is not an option. If those with the means to purchase condos downtown can’t do so in already-desirable neighbourhoods, they will outbid those with less means in other neighbourhoods.

Zoning is one area where the anti-gentrification protesters could better target their wrath. Opening up development in already affluent neighbourhoods where for decades, residents have effectively depopulated their neighbourhoods, as their kids grow up and move out and they occupy far more space than they need.

Instead of posting useless signs in neighbourhoods where gentrification is already underway, they should be standing up to residents’ groups in wealthy neighbourhoods who use their influence to fight zoning that would see more development in their backyards.

I get that some people look at gentrification as a racist, classist issue that destroys community and gives those with more social and economic power more control, and that is a concern. But thinking they’re fighting a spontaneous influx of gluten-free hipsters is a mistake.

A lot of residents do benefit from gentrification, and are at the least ambivalent. Many are thrilled when an eyesore of an autobody shop becomes a well-lit café serving sustainable vegetarian dishes.

I don’t want to see lower and middle-income residents pushed out of their neighbourhoods any more than the sign-posters do, which is why I’ve always been a proponent of affordable housing and mixed-use development.

We should respect and preserve the history of our neighbourhoods. We should speak up when we hear about displacement of the marginalized and fight for solutions. We should acknowledge the concerns and anger of those being disadvantaged by development. We should support local businesses that hire locally, respect the community, and have at least a few items on their menus or on their racks that regular folk can afford. We should get to know our neighbours by name and say hello. We should demand affordable housing even if we don’t need it ourselves. We should confront our elected officials.

Fight gentrification if you want to, but do it while boosting, not dividing, your community.