Transit-Oriented Development and Suburban Gentrification: A “Natural Reality” of Refugee Displacement in Metro Vancouver

ABSTRACT

This article examines a highly localized example of marginalized renters in an aging, low- to moderate-density suburban neighborhood facing displacement because of high-density redevelopment in a transit-oriented development (TOD) planning area. In doing so, I offer a case study for those concerned that TOD interventions could result in gentrification and the displacement of low-income groups. In this article I show how TOD policy has come to bear upon residents of a single rental apartment complex in Metro Vancouver’s suburban City of Coquitlam, in British Columbia, Canada. This local case lies at a nexus of international migration, the Syrian refugee crisis, understandings of adequate refugee housing, and imaginaries of sustainable urban renewal. TOD policies are buttressed by arguments for smart growth and environmental sustainability, and in this case those arguments surmount social equity concerns. However, I question the impartiality of TOD logic requiring high-density residential redevelopment around rapid transit stations when residential intensification policies readily target areas of lower income renters, but are slower to affect areas of single-family homes. A mixed-methods research design of Geographical Information System (GIS) mapping, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions reveals a complicated set of circumstances in which TOD planning contributed to the displacement of Syrian refugees.

KEYWORDS:

• gentrification
• rental housing
• transit-oriented development/revitalization
• urban planning

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank David Ley, Danielle DeVries, Penny Gurstein, Elvin Wyly, and Michelle Stump for their feedback on drafts of this article. I also thank the three anonymous reviewers; their feedback greatly improved this article. I would also like to acknowledge the support of the Real Estate Foundation of BC through The University of British Columbia’s Housing Research Collaborative. I am deeply grateful to all informants and focus group participants.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Please refer to Section A1 in Appendix A for background on the Evergreen extension and the push toward TOD in Metro Vancouver.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Neighbourhood Change Research Partnership [Research Award]; the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada [Doctoral Award].

Notes on contributors

Craig E. Jones

Craig E. Jones is a PhD candidate in the Department of Geography at The University of British Columbia.