Breathing New Rhythm into Tired Streets

[MountainLaurel]

I'm fascinated by the idea of yoga studios being a harbinger of gentrification.

To track the economic transformation of Washington, here's a simple rule: Follow the yoga mats.

The march of yoga studios from west to east across the District dovetails with the development frenzy that began five years ago and is remaking long-stagnant neighborhoods.

And it's not by accident. Owners of yoga studios are drawn to the cheap rents of transitional neighborhoods, naturally, but some developers actively recruit them. They see the studios as symbols of safety for women and amenities for their target demographic.

"Yoga tends to be an activity done by well-educated people -- it's a quiet, subtle sign that things are changing," said John K. McIlwain, a senior fellow for housing at the Urban Land Institute. "It doesn't mean upper-income people necessarily, because students do it, but they are much more highly educated people. These tend to be the gentrifiers."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/11/AR2006061100766.html

[shrike]

1. Actually, I'd say artists are more the harbinger of change

Where the artists go, the yuppies follow. I see it time and time ago. Artists rent cheap space in a downtown area, funky shops and coffee places move in after them, and then they get discovered by the yuppie crowd.
Although I suppose yoga purveyors may fall in the same category.