This project investigates the demographic and income patterns driving urban displacement across a study population of 9.75 million — exposing the fault lines between who benefits from neighborhood change and who cannot afford to stay.
"Gentrification is not random. It follows the predictable geography of concentrated wealth, moving into neighborhoods where longtime residents cannot compete on income alone."
— Urban Change Lab · 2024↑ Add photo: A street-level view of a neighborhood in transition — older homes alongside new construction.
Gentrification reshapes cities neighborhood by neighborhood — changing who can afford to live where, and who gets left behind. This project draws on census data to quantify the demographic and income patterns that drive urban displacement across LA County's 8 Community College Districts.
By examining racial composition alongside income and rent data, we can see how structural economic inequality maps directly onto housing pressure — and who, ultimately, pays the price of change.
Use the navigation above to explore the raw data, read the planned interactive narrative, and view our summary visualizations.
"The data doesn't lie: neighborhoods with the highest concentration of working-class renters and income inequality are the most vulnerable to rapid, irreversible change." — Urban Change Lab · Research Summary · 2024
All figures pulled live from the ddelgatt_LA_neighborhoods MySQL database across three tables: demographic, income, and medianRent. Every number here is directly from the source.
Population composition across all 8 LA County CCDs. Data shows 2024 estimates for Hispanic/Latino population and non-Hispanic race groups from the demographic table.
Median and mean household income per district from the income table, sorted highest to lowest. Shows share of households at the top and bottom income brackets.
Median gross rent from the medianRent table for 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2024. Click any column header to sort. Los Angeles district row is highlighted.
A scripted, interactive narrative sequence guiding users through LA County's displacement crisis — from demographic portrait to income stratification to scenario modeling. Seven frames, approximately 4 minutes of guided experience.
The interactive narrative is designed as a scroll-triggered sequence: the user moves through scenes one at a time, with charts building, numbers animating, and annotations appearing as they scroll. Every moment is intentional.
The goal is that by the end, the reader understands not just what the numbers say — but what they mean for the people who live inside them.
Planned Feature Full interactive build coming in the final milestone.
Notes for M4 implementation.
.in-view) which triggers animation CSS. No library needed — pure vanilla JS.chart.update('active') with animation duration 300–500ms. Easing: easeInOutQuart.modeled scenario to distinguish from real data.matchMedia('(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)'). If true, skip animations and show content immediately. All charts must be accessible without animation.Six charts built from live database data — demographics, income, and rent across all 8 LA County CCDs. All data from ddelgatt_LA_neighborhoods.
Each bar is one district. Segments show Hispanic/Latino, NH White, NH Black, NH Asian, and other populations as a share of total. Hover for counts.
Pick a district to see its racial breakdown as a donut.
Total Hispanic/Latino residents per district. Hover for exact count and % of total.
Click district buttons to show/hide lines. Hover for exact median income per year.
Click district buttons to toggle lines. Hover for exact rent values.
Which districts saw the biggest rent growth? Hover bars for exact % change.
How much does bedroom count cost you? Pick any district and year to see how rent scales from studio to 5+ bedrooms. Useful for understanding whether families — not just single renters — can afford to stay.