[bsanr]

>No fundamental change in their utility?

Yes. A given neighborhood might change, but a common, if not fundamental, characteristic of gentrification is that the associated demographic shifts constitute a commensurate shift in the location of community-related amenities, e.g., good schools, lower crime, public and private investment in public spaces. In other words, gentrification doesn't create more affluent communities, it simply shifts them, to places ready for new development as older communities become less desirable ultimately as a simple function of their age.

There is also the necessity of addressing the role of race and class anxiety in how, why, and when we invest in communities.