Over the past two decades, the arrival of big businesses has been a driver of gentrification processes, most noted with tech companies established since the dot-com boom in large urban centers like San Francisco and Seattle. But new trends in gentrification suggest that similar effects are taking place in small-to-mid-sized U.S. towns, where residents are increasingly facing rising costs, erosion of local culture and shifting demographics.
When Amazon announced its plans to build a second headquarters, many cities had mixed feelings about being in the running. Like Amazon’s home city of Seattle, could they too, run the risk of becoming gentrified? What if the cost of living rose too rapidly? How would a tech giant like Amazon change its culture and economy? What would happen to residents that did not benefit from new, high-paying jobs?
By now, gentrification is a household word among city experts and city dwellers alike. It refers to when neighborhoods—mostly in big cities—see new middle-class and wealthy residents move in to existing neighborhoods, which in turn, see a rapid rise in the cost of living along with changes in demographics, services and culture, and the displacement of lower income residents and people of color. Instances of gentrification are often seen in downtowns previously left to decay by “white flight” and the development of new suburban utopias. The establishment of large companies in major cities has been identified as a major driver of these gentrification processes, with examples ranging from the aforementioned Amazon in Seattle to Kendall Square in Cambridge, MA, where the presence of new biotech companies led to the displacement of both lower-income residents and smaller start-up companies.
Gentrification outside of the big city
Many think of gentrification as a big city problem. But a closer look at evolving trends reveals that gentrification may also pose a threat to socio-economic, racial and health equity in much smaller towns across the U.S. Experts like geographers Lise Nelson and Peter Nelson have identified migration patterns of wealthy urban professionals towards rural areas in search of an escape from the bustle of urban life. Examples of this small-town gentrification include towns like Moab, Utah where the town’s primary industry shifted from a dying uranium-mining industry to a thriving cultural destination, or Traverse City, a sleepy beach town on the shores of Lake Michigan where a similar boom has led to a showdown between longtime residents and hungry developers. Aided by new technologies that allow workers in highly paid jobs to work remotely, places known for their natural beauty, tranquil lifestyles and “small-town charm” are attracting wealthier residents, consequently raising the cost of living and changing residential demographics. These patterns of rural growth driven by urban migrants can be found globally from Missoula, Montana in the U.S. to Empordanet in Spain.
Downtown Traverse City. (Photo by Jesse Green via Next City)
But what about the role of big business in changing small towns? The tech and dot-com booms brought to light the role of big businesses as drivers of gentrification in major cities, but we have thought less about the relationship between big business and small to mid-sized towns in the US. Might the same thing be happening there?
Back in my home state of Arkansas, similar shifts in affordability are afoot, driven perhaps not by small-town charm, but by big business in the agricultural and retail industries. Two of the largest employers in the state, Amazon’s arch-rival Walmart, and Tyson Foods, now the world’s second largest producer of chicken, beef and pork, started as small town family-operated businesses, rising to their current status as multi-national companies over several decades. The Walmart Corporation started as a family-owned 5 and dime store in nearby Bentonville, Arkansas, and Tyson Foods itself originated as a family-owned chicken farm during the Great Depression. Over several decades, these towns remained relatively low- to middle-class, matching the needs of workers from these companies. In fact,the Walmart Museum in downtown Bentonville highlights Walmart’s role in keeping costs low for the modern family. But as these companies age and grow, their impact on towns may be changing, focusing on attracting higher-level managerial employees rather than matching the lifestyles and needs of the majority of longer-term employees.
Tyson Foods wreaks havoc on (even smaller) towns
The growth of companies like Walmart and Tyson Foods have had a devastating effect on rural communities across the US, but in very different ways. First, in small rural communities in Arkansas and other states, the corporatization of the agricultural industry due to the success of companies like Tyson Foods has essentially wiped out local economies. As described in his book, The Meat Racket, Christopher Leonard details how few companies rose to dominate the US market for meat by rapidly buying out competitors during the 1980’s and 90’s. As the company gained profit and power, it continued to “vertically integrate”. In other words, in many small towns Tyson now owns formerly locally-owned businesses that their industry relies on such as the local slaughterhouse, hatchery and feed mill (see Leonard’s description of Waldron, AR). While the farms that supply animals may not be owned by Tyson, they are largely controlled by restrictive contracts. Tyson Foods generates income in these rural communities, but the money does not remain in the local economy. Instead, it is siphoned upstream to its headquarters in Springdale, and then on to Wall Street or beyond.
Empty storefronts in downtown Green Forest, Arkansas, one of many “Tyson towns” (Photo by Christopher Leonard via Mother Earth News)
Changes afoot further up the food chain
Meanwhile, in Springdale, with a population of approximately 78,000, quite different changes have taken place over the same time period. As in the case of most cities and towns in the US during the 80’s and 90’s, many wealthy families in Northwest Arkansas, Springdale’s region where both Walmart and Tyson Foods are based, moved to new suburbs where they could build big new homes and enjoy the safety of gated communities. Thus, locally-owned small businesses like hardware and grocery stores downtown, were replaced by big-box stores closer to the new suburban developments, shifting the location of the towns’ business districts toward the outskirts of town and leaving empty storefronts downtown. Almost all of these are owned by the Walmart Corporation based in nearby Bentonville—Walmart Neighborhood Market, Walmart Supercenters, and Sam’s Clubs. Walmart, which in many ways came to dominate retail in the same way that Tyson Foods monopolizes the meat market, providing anything that a suburban family might need, as well as conveniently large parking lots.
A 7,000 square foot home in Tyson-owned Clear Creek development currently on the market for 1.3 million dollars.
By the late 1990’s, downtown Springdale, was increasingly occupied by lower-income populations, Latin American immigrants, and a relocated community of Marshallese Islanders, many of whom were drawn by the plethora of low-skilled jobs at companies like Tyson Foods. As the town’s largest employer, the Tyson family and company have long contributed to the local economy and resources. Tyson money built Helen Tyson Middle School, Don Tyson Parkway, Randall Tyson Park, and a new 54,000 square foot building at the University of Arkansas- the Don Tyson Center for Agricultural Sciences. In the 2000’s, as the company’s annual income rose by over 245 percent to hit $778 million in profit in 2013, they partnered with national organizations like Share Our Strength to aid in hunger and disaster relief. In addition to these charitable causes, the Tyson family also owns several properties catering to the wealthy, such as the Clear Creek housing development, in neighboring Johnson, featuring upscale homes built around an 18-hold private golf course.
Newly renovated downtown office of Tyson Foods, which will accommodate 300 technology employees. (Photo by @hwhitaker via Twitter)
However, in the past five years, amenities in the town have started to change. As the company grew, the headquarters began to employ more and more higher-level employees—the leaders of the now multi-national corporation—thus having a vested interest in making Springdale an attractive place for high-income residents—the very same employees they aim to recruit. In 2017, Tyson Foods opened a new corporate office in the heart of downtown Springdale, demonstrating a complete reversal of the suburban trends from previous decades (Tyson’s headquarters was relocated South of town in 1970 to a street which was renamed Don Tyson Parkway in 2008) and a reflection of many similar patterns of center-city redevelopment throughout the US.
Walter Turnbow Park in downtown Springdale
The original 1950s Apollo Theater in Springdale was revitalized into an event space and is one of many new developments downtown. (Photo via Kuaf.com)
It is no accident that current changes in Springdale reflect changes in the needs of the corporation itself—to attract world-class corporate leadership rather than the working class. A city plan written soon after the announcement of the new Tyson building read, “People have gotten tired of strips and malls…Economic investment now requires a sense of place!”, and focused on downtown revitalization. Today, Springdale’s Facebook page features yoga classes, outdoor movies and craft beer festivals, activities that would attract crowds in the famously gentrified neighborhoods of New York City and San Francisco. Businesses like Tyson Foods have also contributed to these trends in downtown areas by sponsoring new parks, recreational facilities, and cultural events, while reaping the economic benefits of development in Springdale. While recent records report little change in demographics, such transformation may soon follow the rapid change in amenities and attractions. Between 2000 and 2016, median home prices nearly doubled from $86,500 t0 $160,300.
In cases like Springdale, the question remains: with all of these new attractions downtown, what will happen to the current residents? Will current changes lead to “gentrification”, a process of neighborhood change that we have observed through the impact of big businesses like Amazon on neighborhoods in larger cities?
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Top photo: How Little Rock Won by Saying No to Amazon, via adweek.com
