District of Columbia, I’m Yours!

Well, it’s official…I might just be a “gentrifier!” My sibling and I, who are not from anywhere near this Mid-Atlantic region, decided, brilliantly, to plunk down some of our hard earned savings and purchase a rowhouse (rowhome, townhouse…I’ll never realy know which is the favored term) right in the U Street Corridor area. This is our first home, and we are excited that we are well on our way to being the next Donald Trumps of the DC area (it just takes one rowhouse before the millions fall from your attic, I hear!).

Previously Sibling and I briefly lived in the Bloomingdale neighborhood (shout out!), and we really liked it. I enjoyed the feeling of being in a residential neighborhood, without all of the hustle and bustle, but still being close enough to all of the hustle and bustle if I wanted to hustle and bustle. But, alas, nothing was quite affordable in the neighborhood at the time.

Fortunately, though, we came upon a decent sized rowhouse in the not as exciting area (that’s not my opinion–just what I hear) of the U Street Corridor. We are closer to the 10th Street metro entrance than the 13th Street entrance. However, we are really digging it. I can walk two blocks to the metro (I’m never going to get a car now!). There’s a CVS AND Rite Aid, for crying out loud! There are more Ethiopian restaurants than I know what to do with. I have access to the whole world now, and I am thrilled beyond belief!

Anyhow, all of that was well and good until, as I was getting ready for work (yeah, I have one of those job things) after our first or second night in the place, Sibling casually mentioned that gunshots were heard in the direction of Florida Avenue and the helicopters we were both hearing were the aftermath of the shots. Of course, this did not make me want to leave my abode and risk being shot up on my two block walk to the Metro. Immediately, I thought, why did we gentrify (my exact thoughts…okay not exactly)? But, I got over it (I had heard shots in Bloomingdale, too) and managed by the grace of God to survive the perilous two block walk to the Metro.

So, I want to welcome myself (and Sibling) to the new world of homeownership. It is an exciting thing to do in these times. We are both in our twenties. We haven’t been in DC very long (psst…sometime we don’t always like DC). Homes are outrageously priced! But, I am glad we did it. I’m glad to be present in this transitioning District of Columbia. I really don’t view myself as a “gentrifier” (honest!)–that just seems to be the generic label for non-native, unimpoverished newcomers. I despise the fact that many people wear that label as a badge of honor, as if they have been commissioned to rid the city of its poor and colored “riff raff.” I love everybody! I want the city to continue to get cleaner and safer, but I certainly don’t ascribe to the belief that majorities of people have to be displaced and overlooked at the expense of the so-called deep-pocketed.

What I’m saying, is that I like my new house, and I am excited about the projects that the DC government purports to have planned for the U Street and Shaw areas. I like the convenience of living in the city. I like that it is supposedly a lot safer than it used to be. I like a lot of things.

So, after all of my rambling, to answer the question, “Why gentrify?!,” I say, if you are looking for an easier commute, if you are looking to take advantage of the city’s cultural resources, if you are looking to try new foods and other things, if you looking to participate in improving the city (via your tax dollars), if you are looking to never be bored, that’s why you gentrify. City life is nifty, and I am digging it.