Although twenty years ago DC seemed like exile into Siberia for many young people who had to relocate there for work, now, it's considered a relatively hip place to be.
The gentrification of Washington has occurred in an effort to attract more young people, and the young people coming in flocks to the city has also spurred more gentrification. But what happens when all these young people start families and require more than a one-bedroom luxury condo?
For many families with kids, it's a struggle. Many would cite education as the biggest obstacle, but for others it's a simple as finding somewhere safe for kids to play. DC has improved a lot-- but not that much. If DC could improve its school system and safety, the city could increase revenue by more than $300 million.
When Adrian Fenty was mayor in 2007, he made efforts to increase the number of bike lanes, bike shares, and streetcar tracks, but there's still a growing wealth disparity between the new white residents and minorities. Several neighborhoods still struggle with unemployment and crime. Surprisingly, DC maintained one of the lowest unemployment rates during the Recession.
The city isn't a place for poor young people, though. Many old residents have been displaced by the growing costs in housing and amenities. The draw of the city is that there's so much to do-- ethnic restaurants are everywhere; there are movie theaters, stage theatres, museums; both the art and music scenes are thriving.
So what will happen to these people when they have families if the DC system doesn't make efforts to improve? Many love the city too much to leave, meaning that they'll have to spend the extra money to send kids to private school or drive them to public schools in the suburbs where they qualify as "out of bounds students". Other families simply succumb to the pressure and move out to spacious Ashburn or Loudon county, where the housing is cheap and spacious, and the schools are good. DC needs to respond fast so they don't alienate these young families.
This article was intriguing to me because I love DC. While many of my classmates find that there's absolutely nothing to do in this area and want to get as far away as they can from here, I'd love to live in the city after college. There's a wealth of opportunities that I'd love to take advantage of, and it's just... fun. Although I don't know what my plans are after that, I'd hope that in fifteen years, the city has improved enough to start a family. It'd be expensive, but I don't think that it's that bad of an environment to raise a family in. The article was interesting, but not much that I didn't already know.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/dcs-growth-is-fueled-by-20-somethings-can-the-city-grow-up-with-them/2012/05/25/gJQAYBS3pU_story_1.html
