How gentrification in Zurich led to a housing shortage – rts.ch

Even one of the richest cities in the world is struggling to cope with its housing crisis. As local shops give way to trendy cafes and diverse communities are replaced by “ambitious young executives” from the technology and finance sectors, Zurich faces a growing challenge: providing affordable housing.

The latest report from Raiffeisen bank on real estatepublished in September 2024, reveals a 6.4% increase in rents offered in the second quarter of this year, the largest increase in more than thirty years. In the gentrified district of Zurich-West, real estate prices continue to soar, with a proliferation of luxury projects.

For example, a 3.5 room apartment in Zurich-West is rented for 8,100 francs per month, depending on the Daily Gazette. A figure that contrasts sharply with the 2022 averages for the entire city: 1,787 francs for a four-room apartment and 1,470 francs for a three-room apartment, according to the City of Zurich.

The theory and practice of gentrification

In principle, we speak of gentrification when a neighborhood becomes more attractive to a wealthy social class, leading to the displacement of low-income populations. In Zurich, this process is a reflection of a broader housing crisis, where demand for luxury real estate is transforming the city.

This phenomenon is not new. Phillip L. Clay, professor of housing policy and urban planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), had already conducted extensive research on the subject before publishing a book in 1979 which dealt with the transformation of American cities .

In this book, Phillip L. Clay describes the five stages of gentrification, beginning with the pioneer phase, in which artists, “bohemians” or “risk-tolerant people” move into blighted neighborhoods, by making progressive improvements.

In the second phase, people from the middle class are attracted to the neighborhood, thus accelerating investments. The third phase is marked by greater private and public investments, often with the intervention of large real estate developers.

How Zurich fits into this scheme

The application of Philipp L. Clay’s theoretical framework to the Zurich-West district provides interesting insights. During the 1970s and 1980s, the neighborhood was the scene of political unrest and activist movements. The latter were led by young graduates who settled in the Zurich-West district, at the time a low-income industrial area. This transition perfectly illustrates the first stage of gentrification or pioneer phase.

At the time, Zurich was experiencing a significant decline, with the city center, specifically Platzspitz Park, transforming into an open drug scene. Zurich’s Needle Park, as it was nicknamed, accommodated up to 1,000 drug addicts per day.

In 1995, authorities carried out a “cleansing” of the neighborhood, returning drug addicts to their original neighborhoods. The City has also begun planning long-term urban development projects throughout the area, including Zurich-West and its surrounding areas.

The 3rd and 4th phases: the gentrification of Zurich-West

In the particular case of Zurich, the first two stages of gentrification were not directly linked. The transition to early gentrification was encouraged by public initiatives aimed at solving a parallel problem, rather than by continuing the process started by the pioneers.

Over the past twenty years, Zurich West has undergone profound changes, rapidly moving towards the third stage. Former industrial zones and once-stigmatized neighborhoods are now home to skyscrapers such as the Prime Tower, Zurich’s tallest building, surrounded by offices, clubs, restaurants, studios and new housing developments.

Public investments in urban infrastructure reflect the transition from the second to the third phase, favoring the growth of large private investors. In addition, the popularity of high-rise buildings like those in Hardau and Lochergut has skyrocketed. These buildings are now in the heart of the city rather than on its outskirts, attracting the “creative middle class”. These few oases of affordable housing, however, remain insufficient to allow the Zurich working class to remain there.

Zurich-West then enters the fourth phase: “mature gentrification”. In the documentary film PUSH (2019), a bar owner in Brooklyn, New York, observes that artists and “creative people” move in, boosting the neighborhood’s appeal and driving up real estate prices, only to leave find themselves excluded, due to lack of means.

A fifth stage: stabilization or widening of inequalities?

Theories like Phillip L. Clay’s oversimplify the complexities of gentrification. In reality, these processes vary, with steps that may be more nuanced or even omitted.

In its early stages, gentrification can mean economic growth, infrastructure development, and improved public services and transportation. It can also promote social diversity, with less well-off people benefiting from the demands of the middle class for better services.

However, the accentuation of gentrification and the widening of inequalities seem inevitable, with neighborhoods gradually becoming unaffordable.

So the important question is: in which direction do we want to go? Without a considered decision by public authorities and urban planners, the most powerful economic players make the law. Many cities around the world, like Zurich, demonstrate this.

Article original: Fareyah Kaukab (SWI swissinfo.ch)

Adaptation web: Julien Furrer (RTSinfo)