Earlier this week, we learned that Echo Park and Highland Park are quibbling over whether the latter is the next former. But as many commenters pointed out, the Highland Park gentrification is already well on its way. So a better question is: What's the next Highland Park? Based on comments, we narrowed it down to seven neighborhoods (we excluded anything in Northeast LA because we figured they'll all get caught up in the HP rush). We gathered data on household incomes, ages, and four-year degrees from the LA Times's Mapping LA project and data on brunch availability from Yelp (this is a highly unscientific process, yes). And now we want you to vote on which neighborhood is the next HP. (And, as a commenter wisely said, "the real story here is that people are reinvesting in urban neighborhoods period.")
First, for comparison, the stats on Echo Park and Highland Park:
Echo Park
Median household income: $37,708
Median age: 30
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 18%
Number of brunch places: 12
Highland Park
Median household income: $45,478
Median age: 28
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 14.3%
Number of brunch places: 4
And now the contenders:
East Hollywood
Pros: Sandwiched between Hollywood, Franklin Village, Los Feliz, and Silver Lake and all their amenities; home to Los Angeles City College
Cons: Mostly ugly housing options, largely dominated by Scientology and Kaiser
Median household income: $29,927
Median age: 31
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 13.4%
Number of brunch places: 5
Boyle Heights
Pros: Lots of historic LA cred, river and Downtown adjacent, on the Gold Line
Cons: High crime
Median household income: $33,235
Median age: 25
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 5%
Number of brunch places: 6
Lincoln Heights
Pros: In a historic preservation overlay zone and is chock full of old single family houses, already has proto-gentrifying Alta Lofts and Daly Lofts
Cons: The retail options are lacking, but then again, that's what gentrification is for
Median household income: $30,579
Median age: 27
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 5.5%
Number of brunch places: 1
Westlake
Pros: Metro station, Langer's, historic buildings
Cons: MacArthur Park freaks the heck out of middle class people (except when they're going to Langer's)
Median household income: $26,757
Median age: 27
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 12%
Number of brunch places: 14
Pico-Union
Pros: Close to Downtown, in a historic preservation overlay zone full of late nineteenth and early twentieth century houses, has Loyola Law School, pupuserias
Cons: Close to the LA Live part of Downtown
Median household income: $26,424
Median age: 27
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 6.7%
Number of brunch places: 5
Jefferson Park
Pros: In an HPOZ with lots of Craftsman bungalows, USC-adjacent, will be on the Expo Line if it ever opens
Cons: A couple commenters said there's a lack of yuppie-friendly retail in the area
Median household income: $32,654
Median age: 31
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 11.8%
Number of brunch places: 0
Mid-City
Pros: Multiple historic pockets, lots of retail and restaurant options
Cons: No big ones we can see, which is probably why it's already a little more gentrified than a lot of the other neighborhoods on the list
Median household income: $43,711
Median age: 31
Residents 25 and older who have a four-year degree: 16.8%
Number of brunch places: 16
· Is Highland Park the Next Echo Park? Two 'Hoods Debate [Curbed LA]
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