[anon7000]

Infill development is synonymous with gentrification to most people.

Some cheap side of town where a new apartment complex is built on a parking lot of a half-dead strip mall? If it’s “new” it’s going to cost new. Local neighborhood residents won’t be able to afford commercial rent for a mom & pop restaurant compared to bougie-looking expensive shops. That’s gentrification, practically caused by infill development.

I agree that development is crucial, and agree with a lot of your comment. The fact of the matter is that new developments are by definition more expensive to rent out, so any kind of development in a rundown neighborhood will have a tendency to increase prices & drive out residents. There’s no easy way around that fact without government intervention.

The best we can hope for is maxing our development in dense spaces to the point that it won’t need to undergo another such drastic change any time soon, and having government programs to help the people impacted.