Mission Mission

Pack your bags kids, cool has left the neighborhood.

The Wall Street Journal actually produced an interesting piece on how “yupsters” and capitalists made a shitty part of Oakland cool and profitable.  Choice quotes:

Over the past five years, Temescal has become Oakland’s answer to San Francisco’s Mission District and the city of Berkeley, drawing a mix of yuppies and plaid-wearing hipsters. The changing demographics and new businesses have brought results: From fiscal year 2004 to fiscal year 2008, the latest year for which data are available, Oakland’s sales-tax receipts from the Temescal area rose 18% from $294,735 to $348,917, said Keira Williams, retail specialist for the city of Oakland.

The neighborhood still has its lingering troubles. On a recent evening, as young couples parked their strollers outside the Lanesplitter Pub to wait for a table, a panhandler stumbled by, muttering about heroin. Residents say they must be especially wary around Lower Temescal, near 40th Street and the BART station, where empty storefronts and vacant lots dot the avenue.

(link)

(photo by unaesthetic)