Is East Nashville Gentrifying?
- 2 sections
- 1 table
- 3 sources cited
By the accounts of longtime residents and the reporters who have covered it, yes, and for years. In 2018, Scalawag published a story titled “Fighting to Save a Gentrifying East Nashville” that described rising rents and investors displacing residents, and an apartment complex of elderly residents, families, and artists turned within weeks into luxury apartments under a new name (Scalawag). In a later NewsChannel 5 report, longtime resident Brenda Ross said her neighbors had been forced out by finances: “The rent has tripled over the last five years” (NewsChannel 5). Wikipedia sums up the same change from the other side: after about 15 years of rising incomes, it says, the area has kept its artsy reputation while drawing a diverse mix of newcomers (Wikipedia).
What the Accounts Describe
| Source | What it reports |
|---|---|
| Scalawag, May 2018 | earlier displacement from urban renewal, the interstate, and Ellington Parkway, in the words of community organizer Sam McCullough; then rising rents and investor buying |
| NewsChannel 5 | residents' concern over displacement and rent increases, with one saying developers are "buying up everything"; the story was about a state law that cut the Metro Council in half |
| Wikipedia | rising incomes over about 15 years and a mix of newcomers |
Why the Question Is Hard to Answer With One Number
- The area is large. Greater East Nashville spans ZIP codes 37206, 37216, and 37207, so say which part you mean.
- Different measures say different things. Rents, home prices, incomes, and who lives on a block each tell part of the story.
- For a specific block, compare current listings and recent census figures for that tract rather than relying on the neighborhood label.
How the area’s housing costs compare is in whether East Nashville is expensive to live in, and the neighborhood’s longer history is in what East Nashville is known for.