#WaterlooRegion: one person’s revitalization is another’s gentrification
Summary
People in tech circles are well familiar with gentrification challenges in San Francisco and those who are local to Waterloo Region may be aware of similar debates (albeit on a smaller scale) in Kitchener. Although we celebrate this change as revitalization, it often means that rental properties are upgraded in a way that makes them unaffordable to vulnerable portions of our community. Our office is expanding and we’ll soon begin renovations on the 1st floor space in our building, a former TD Canada Trust branch. Homelessness and Mental Health issues are incredibly intertwined and our region is terribly under-served with 22% fewer psychiatric professionals than recommended for our size. While we’re busy building exciting software that changes the world, it’s easy to forget about unintended effects on the local community; or to despair when we do think about them and struggle to understand how we can make a difference.