The Edge Becomes the Center: An Oral History of Gentrification in the Twenty-First Century

Gentrification has visibly transformed American cities, altering their appearance, character, cost, and atmosphere. While journalists, policymakers, critics, and historians have analyzed what happens when new money and residents enter established neighborhoods, the personal experiences of those involved have remained largely untold. The Edge Becomes the Center presents an oral history capturing the voices of diverse participants in this urban transformation—brokers, buyers, sellers, renters, landlords, artists, contractors, politicians, and others—who both shape and are shaped by changes in New York City. DW Gibson moves gentrification from academic and opinion-based discourse into lived experience, documenting what urban change actually looks and feels like through firsthand accounts. Drawing on the tradition of Jane Jacobs and Studs Terkel, the book offers a portrait of contemporary urban life through the perspectives of those experiencing it directly.