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35 T. Marshall L. Rev. 239 (2009-2010)
Houston Gentrification: Options for Current Residents of Third Ward

handle is hein.journals/thurlr35 and id is 243 raw text is: HOUSTON GENTRIFICATION: OPTIONS FOR CURRENT RESIDENTS OF THIRD WARD DANYAHEL NoRRIs* I. INTRODUCTION The Houston Third Ward Community (Third Ward) appears to be undergoing a change in character. Expensive townhomes are replacing once vacant lots, while larger retail chains and the expansion of Houston's light rail system threatens small minority owned businesses.' It is the same change the inner city area of every major city in the United States from New York to San Francisco is undergoing. It is the change due to gentrification. As gentrification slowly changes the face of Third Ward, the current residents are in jeopardy of being displaced. Gentrification is a term used in land development to describe a trend whereby previously underdeveloped areas become revitalized as persons of relative affluence invest in homes and begin to upgrade the neighborhood economically.2 Gentrification often causes the eviction of the less affluent residents who can no longer afford the increasingly expensive housing in their neighborhood.3 Although as gentrification takes place, the current residents of the Third Ward have options that can help minimize displacement and ultimately give them more control over their future. This article will cover several factors affecting gentrification in residential areas, specifically in Third Ward, including: 1) background information on Third Ward and the current effects of gentrification in this area; 2) current laws affecting gentrification in Third Ward; and 3) available options to the current residents of Third Ward. * Danyahel Norris is the Faculty Research Librarian and a Legal Research instructor at Thurgood Marshall School of Law, Texas Southern University; B.S. 2003 University of Houston; J.D. 2007 Texas Southern University. I would like to thank Marcia Johnson for her guidance in the early stages of this article, as well as Kenneth Hadnot, Arva Howard, Garnett Coleman, and Gerald Womack for their input into this article. I would also like to thank my lovely wife Davida Norris for her continual support in all my endeavors. 1. John Buntin, Land Rush: Inner Cities are Becoming Hot Places to Live. Does Government Have any Business Telling Developers to Keep Out?, GOVERNING, Mar. 1, 2006, at 24, available at http://www.governing.com/articlelland-rush. 2. Bus. Ass'n of Univ. City v. Landrieu, 660 F.2d 867, 874 (3d Cir. 1981). 3. Id.

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