Urban and Regional Planning Professor Jeremy Németh's research was featured in Richard Florida's recent CityLab article, "Why Greenway Parks Cause Greater Gentrification." The article dives into the issue of gentrification, which it describes as one of the hottest hot-button issues among urbanists. The article argues that gentrification is driven not only by the desire of the affluent and educated to reduce their commutes to jobs in the Central Business District, but also by the desire to be close to unique urban amenities such as restaurants, galleries, museums, fitness facilities, and park space. 

Florida spends the bulk of the article summarizing a study by Jeremy Németh and Alessandro Rigolon (University of Utah) which takes a close look at the role of urban parks and green spaces in gentrification. The study, "Green gentrification or ‘just green enough’: Do park location, size and function affect whether a place gentrifies or not?" was published in Urban Studies in July 2019. The study covers 10 cities around the country and tracks the role of parks in the gentrification process from 2000 to 2015, specifically looking at the role park size, location, overall quality, and whether the parks are linear "greenway" parks that include an active transportation component. 

The study found that long greenway parks such as New York's High Line, Atlanta's BeltLine, or Chicago's 606 trail, are bigger drivers of gentrification than other types of parks. The study also found that while park size does not play much of a role in gentrification, park location does. Parks located closer to downtown are more likely to spur gentrification than parks located further from the core. 

To learn more about Professor Németh's research and its implications for urban park planning, read the full CityLab article here.