Bates Area Civic Association

Bear Necessities: Will Booze Fuel Bloomingdale’s Renaissance or Regression?

Posted by Lydia DePillis on May. 27, 2010 at 04:13 pm

On a breezy Saturday afternoon, the only sounds in the Big Bear Café at 1700 1st Street NW in Bloomingdale are the tapping of laptops and some hushed conversation, with the occasional shout of a finished sandwich or coffee order from the counter. Ceiling fans whirr overhead. Large open windows make it feel like an open patio, with people spilling out of the café onto the sidewalk.

Shortly after 3 p.m., a group of teens poke their heads in, scoping the serene scene. Suddenly, three of them dart to the counter. One grabs the tip jar. All three race out the open door and down the street. Two patrons jump up and give chase, but no matter; the boys are faster and quickly disappear around a corner.

The pursuers walk back, frustrated. Lenora Yerkes, working the register, hugs them, and is consoled by other patrons. It`s not so much the money in the jar as the feeling of shattered peace and trust. Because that`s the kind of place the Big Bear is: Staffers lent out shovels to neighbors during February`s snowstorms. Since opening in 2007, the café has hosted poetry readings, friendly barista competitions, and champagne breakfasts for people who want to watch the sun rise.

But the tip-jar snatching was a reminder that the Big Bear is still very much alone in the immediate neighborhood, where even after a decade of steady gentrification, the retail landscape remains largely defined by liquor stores and carry-outs. And, in recent weeks, something else has upended Big Bear`s tranquility. Owner Stu Davenport decided to apply for a liquor license.

For all the fanfare that followed the first bonafide sit-down restaurant to open in Ward 8—an IHOP—the fact that Ward 5 is similarly underserved has gone largely unnoticed. Davenport`s plan for an expanded Big Bear menu, including beer, wine and specialty cocktails, would finally pop that cork.

Naturally, the neighbors are worried about getting drenched. “You open up Pandora`s box,“ complains Ed Jones, who lives across the street from the cafe. “You open up one bar here,“ he says, strolling past several empty storefronts along 1st Street later that afternoon, “and you have a whole lot of bars along this strip here. I`m sure that Adams Morgan wasn`t like that originally. It doesn`t take much to interrupt the pseudo-peace of the neighborhood.“

Davenport, a general contractor who purchased the two-story painted brick building for $400,000 in 2006, has been running the gauntlet of local community groups in recent weeks, campaigning for their support of his expansion plans.

“The idea is to create an environment that`s responsible, that I would want to live next to, and have it be financially viable to stay open,“ he calmly told members of the Eckington Civic Association on Tuesday. “And one of the main ways to do that is to expand our menu, and one of the things that we want to add to that menu is alcohol.“

Several elderly ladies in the audience exchanged knowing looks.

Davenport is getting used to the glares.

In early May, he formally brought his plans for alcohol service before the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission 5C. Since Davenport himself is a commissioner, Big Bear employee Yerkes made the case on his behalf, seeking a stipulated license that would allow the cafe to serve alcohol while its official application to the city`s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) is being processed.

The room in St. George`s Church that night was packed with Big Bear supporters. It was a central casting image of the new, comparatively white, Bloomingdale; many thumbing their mobiles throughout the proceedings. They spoke impassionedly of how going to the café had brought the community together, and all they wanted was to be able to go get a glass of wine in the evening, too. Someone in the back held up hastily scribbled signs reading “BIG BEAR YES WE CAN.“

Under pressure from commissioners, Yerkes proferred 600 letters of support from nearby residents, and she claimed to have notified all of the immediate neighbors of Big Bear`s ambitions. But she apparently missed a few. Two detractors stood up to protest, arguing that an alcohol-serving Big Bear would make nearby parking impossible, bring trash and noise, and attract thieves seeking to take advantage of tipsy rubes. The commission tabled the vote, and Davenport began negotiating a voluntary agreement with neighbors that would potentially limit his hours of operation.

“There`s a misconception that if I get 600 people to sign, that constitutes a preponderance of support,“ observes Bloomingdale Civic Association president Robert Brannum. “ABRA responds to protests, not shouts of hosanna.“

The quality of life concerns seemed to underscore a deeper fear: a sense that Big Bear`s alcohol program would drag the neighborhood backwards. Before the spot was a café, it was Big Bear Market, which dispensed alcohol just like Sunshine Liquors, still operating across the street.

“It doesn`t matter if it`s black people on a corner drinking beer, or whether it is young white folks on the corner drinking wine out of a pretty glass—it doesn`t matter who`s drinking it, or what it looks like, I don`t want it on my block“ says Tracey Campfield, who moved to the area in 1998 (and, like nearly all Big Bear detractors, is African-American). “I have fought the good fight, with drug dealers, and dirty alleys, and rats in the alley, and people drinking on the corners…I don`t want to fight that fight again.“

ANC Commissioner John Salatti, among Big Bear`s biggest supporters, dismisses that fear as irrational. “Stuart turned that market, which was a hellhole, into something nice,“ Salatti says. “Now, all of a sudden, him having that option turns us back into the drug-dealing, crack-smoking, 40-ounce land of 1990 or 2000?“

To some long-term residents, Davenport is only piggy-backing on their hard work to improve the neighborhood. “Efforts from people like me, when we came in, of getting rid of the drug dealing that was going on, and getting rid of the theft, made it possible for other people like the Big Bear owner to come along in 2004 and say, `Hey, this is a viable neighborhood for my home, as well as my business,“` says Eric Woods, who moved to the 100 block of S Street in 1995. “Coming here in 2004, I don`t see that being a pioneer.“

That`s what it felt like, though, to Big Bear co-founder Lana Labermeier. When she and Davenport moved to the neighborhood six years ago, she felt unsafe walking the streets, and got a dog to protect herself. The couple started the café to provide a place for people to gather, and even then dealt with accusations that they were gentrifying the neighborhood.

“A lot of these same old-time residents felt that this was a place in the neighborhood that seemed to be attracting these young white kids,“ she says. “The Big Bear was blamed for being the cause of it. It was the easiest thing to point to.“

Labermeier says the couple had always planned on one day offering beer and wine. But liquor license battles in nearby neighborhoods provided a preview of what they`d have to go through, and she was scrambling just to keep the café afloat. When the former husband-and-wife team eventually split up last year, Davenport moved forward with the alcohol effort on his own.

“Providing liquor is almost like opening up a second business,“ Labermeier says. “I was just too exhausted to think about a whole new endeavor.“

Pat Mitchell, president of the nonprofit group North Capitol Main Streets, worries how the Big Bear debacle may impact future development along 1st Street, which the Urban Land Institute recently recommended as a better corridor to cluster new retail and dining establishments than congested North Capitol Street.

“I think it sends a pretty bad message to the business community, really, whether it`s a restaurant or a coffeeshop or a flowershop,“ Mitchell says.

A lot of the hullaboo has to do with the fact that the local ANC has never before dealt with restaurants serving liquor, just retail liquor stores (and, as Salatti points out, the ANC hasn`t been particularly zealous in regulating those). Given Ward 5`s lack of eateries, and the large amount of expected development in the area, ANC Commissioner Barrie Daneker is currently collaborating with neighboring ANCs to draft common guidelines for evaluating future applications. As a model, he says he`d like to use the state of Rhode Island, where his father uncle was the state liquor commissioner.

Of course, there are working models a lot closer to home: Prolific restaurateur Joe Englert found the structure quite accomodating when pursuing his vast plans for nightlife on H Street NE.

“ANC 6A is a refreshing place to do business because they research a subject and applicants before they jump to conclusions,“ says Englert. “Business owners are treated like adults not would-be criminals….Protestants have to substantiate claims and objections and are questioned just as vigorously as applicants.“

Even the arbiters of the process want to see ANC 5C get a proper sit-down restaurant. ABRA community resource officer Cynthia Simms was called to last week`s ANC meeting to better explain the process—but ended up giving her opinion as well: “I promised my director I was not going to say it, but I can`t help myself. I live in Ward 7, and I would die for a restaurant over there where we are! I just would.“

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Below are the responses to date — for your reading pleasure:

/Manor

May 27th, 2010 4:33 pm #1

Given the daily drunkfest at Florida and North Capitol, its funny to hear Ed Jones and Tracey Campfield say they don`t want alcohol sales. Please be honest with everyone and just say “Better blight than white.“ And don`t forget to whine about the lack of investment in the inner city.

/Skipper

May 27th, 2010 5:04 pm #2

It`s all about gentrification; nothing more.

To compare people sitting down enjoying a glass of wine to crackheads and drunks is just astoundingly stupid and shows you what the issue really is: race and class.

/Robert Vinson Brannum

May 27th, 2010 5:27 pm #3

There is a reason why many people distrust the media. Ms. DePillis takes a response to one question and uses it to frame a response to a different thought. While Ms. DePillis has a right to write what she pleases, I would have expected her to place my response accurately to the issue discussed. It is regrettable Ms. DePillis did not write my comments that members of the Bloomingdale Civic Association expressed support for the Big Bear license.

Robert Vinson Brannum, President

The Bloomingdale Civic Association, Inc.

/Stu

May 27th, 2010 5:48 pm #4

Its not a race or class issue. Ed and Tracy come to the cafe often. We`ve lived together for years.

People simply don`t want the corner to get out of control. They want to make sure we at the BBC know what we are doing.

We are taking our time. We are trying to figure this out together. If we do come to a good agreement – and I think many of us are on the same page – it will be better for all of us in the future.

We`re all trying to get away from bullet proof glass, police lights and video cameras.

/JY

May 27th, 2010 6:17 pm #5

The first two comments (from Manor and Skipper) are incredibly frustrating. Communities of color have to constantly deal with privileged folks telling them how to “invest“ in their own neighborhoods, without truly engaging in equitable or sensitive dialogue on how those “investments“ should actually be made. Manor, to dismiss the concerns of Bloomingdale residents as a “better blight than white“ attitude is a gross over-simplification of a REAL hardship that wealthier, whiter communities don`t have to face: having business owners (who often wield greater political and economic power) push their own agendas, without listening to or taking seriously the concerns of people who actually LIVE there. This is not to say that BBC is uninterested in having that kind of conversation; it`s only to point out that disparaging community members for raising their concerns, and to implicitly dismiss their opposition as racist, is fucked up. If anyone is actually “[whining] about the lack of investment in the inner city“, I imagine that they`re REALLY trying to talk about the fact that business owners will only invest when they can do whatever they want and be totally unaccountable to the residents.

This is also why Skipper`s comment is so infuriating, who mentions gentrification as if it isn`t a hardship that disproportionately affects people of color and lower income. It is NOT stupid to raise concerns about bringing alcohol into an establishment that caters largely to affluent, white, young people — and if you can`t appreciate the objections raised by a person like Tracey Campbell (who has obviously had to deal with a lot of shit in her own neighborhood), then it might be better for you to try to learn something about those concerns, rather than dismiss them out of hand. Experiences like Tracey`s are too often disregarded by people like you, which does nothing but demonstrate YOUR ignorance and privileged obliviousness.

The veiled suggestions here that racism and classism are the motivations for Bloomingdale residents` concerns totally disgusts me. Clearly, neither Manor or Skipper have much experience with being on the losing end of gentrification. Maybe y`all should actually try to LEARN something from folks like Tracey Campbell and Eric Woods, who probably know a LOT more than you do about what it takes to rebuild a neighborhood.

/Alaina

May 27th, 2010 6:27 pm #6

I enjoyed this article. It highlighted the communities valid concerns. I know Big Bear does not take these concerns lightly and will continue to live up to a standard that promotes community involvement, togetherness and the desire to live in a loving, involved community.

I am new to the community and am impressed with the passion I see from everyone. Kudos to the work that has been done here. Kudos to this community.

Stay positive. In life, we are all in this together.

/Manor

May 27th, 2010 6:31 pm #7

Calling that area `rebuilt` in any sense is a cruel joke. Its probably one of the worst neighborhoods in America if judged by daily public drunkenness, literacy of residents, employment of residents, life expectancy of residents, and virtually any other indicator we can think of. Maybe Campbell and Woods should realize they`ve enabled a permanent underclass and that`s about all and let folks invest in that area. I`m glad they`ve created good lives for themselves in the process, but that doesn`t give them the right to exclude others who have every right to live and invest.

/Q st dude

May 27th, 2010 6:40 pm #8

as a new resident/owner to the area, I appreciate the struggles of the “pioneers“ of the late 90`s in cleaning up the area. those are the folks that give neighborhood its strong sense of community. I`m sure that they envisioned, one day, for 1st st to become something more than a hangout for junkies and drunkies and to have real businesses & cafes & restaurants make the block vibrant. Big Bear took a chance on Bloomingdale and, after several years of a track record of being a good 7 responsible neighbor, it seems fair that the community take a chance on Big Bear. heck, give `em a test run and see how it goes. but to outright deny the chance for this business to expand in Bloomingdale would not bode well for any other small business owner who has the massive amount of cash required to open up a place AND is interested in Bloomingdale. They will look elsewhere. in the meantime, we`ll end up with more liquor stores and check cashing places that way. Like many of you, I`m looking forward to a sit down restaurant just steps from my house…and it starts here with Big Bear.

/Sally

May 27th, 2010 :805 pm #9

I wish Big Bear Cafe much luck. The Bloomingdale neighborhood deserves better than just corner liquor stores and bullet-proof glass take-out places.

/Rick Mangus

May 27th, 2010 8:53 pm #10

There`s a racial component here for sure!

I vehemently support the Big Bear`s application for a liquor license because I believe that it will serve its loyal customers better with minimal impact on our community, and nothing more than that.

/JM

May 28th, 2010 6:58 am #11

The concerns of two residents should dominate the desires of a community of 600? That`s racism, not fairness.

/JY

May 28th, 2010 10:06 am #12

Although I can`t say for sure, I highly doubt that all 600 signatories are residents of Bloomingdale. Additionally, it seems pretty unreasonable to believe that ONLY two residents have concerns about this issue.

I, for one, would not be opposed to having alcohol served at BBC. But I don`t live in Bloomingdale, and I would defer heavily towards those that do, particularly those whose voices are not consistently met with respect and sensitivity (as evidenced by so many of the comments on this article).

/Skipper

May 28th, 2010 10:32 am #13@JY: Blah, blah, blah. Go to Big Bear Cafe and see if they have any cheese to go along with your whine.

Comparing people sipping wine from a glass in an outdoor dining area to crackheads on the corner is absolutely stupid.

End of discussion

.

/JY

May 28th, 2010 12:02 pm #14

Skipper, I think you`re missing the point. If you actually read the comments made by the residents quoted in this article, you`ll see that no one is comparing crackheads to folks sipping out of wine glasses at BBC. As I read it, they`re talking about their concerns with introducing more alcohol into the neighborhood, based on experiences that people have had in the past.

Good talk, though, and nice pun. It really put me in my place.

/Rick Mangus

May 28th, 2010 12:16 pm #15FUCK THE TWO RESIDENTS!, majority rule here, PERIOD!

/Skipper

May 28th, 2010 2:41 pm #16

@JY: From the story — “It doesn`t matter if it`s black people on a corner drinking beer, or whether it is young white folks on the corner drinking wine out of a pretty glass—it doesn`t matter who`s drinking it, or what it looks like, I don`t want it on my block“ says Tracey Campfield.

And yes, she is comparing a bunnch of drunks on the corner outside a liquor store with patrons of a restaurant having wine with dinner.

Therefore, stupid.

/The Commish

May 28th, 2010 :26 pm #17

First let me make clear that is was my uncle that was the RI State Liquor Commissioner and not my father, although my father did run a restaurant in RI call the Pine Grove Inn.

Furthermore, I liked hearing that ANC 6A has a process that examines the applicant and the business. As previous stated Ward 5 ANC`s A, B and C will have this on the agenda of the joint meeting held quarterly.

Commissioner Ransom has done extensive research on the applicant and the various aspects such as zoning, public space and the ABRA process, I think it is very important to note these findings. BBC has not obtained the proper occupancy certificate for this business since it open, therefore it has operated outside of the law for almost 3 years. Their occupancy is currently 3 people, although they came before the ANC two years ago to get a letter of support for zoning expectations to go before BZA for an exception and for the occupancy to be raised to 49, it was never followed up on. The application was just file this year in January. This gives some indication on the management of the business. It`s obvious that getting the proper permits for occupancy and the use of public space (outside patio) wasn`t important. It appears that running your business without proper permitting was just fine by BBC management team. Frankly I feel this is a major negative to the BBC application.

Now we have to consider the kitchen, this will be a tiny kitchen with a fryer and a grill, which means very limited food service–sandwiches, salads, etc. We won`t be seeing any great entree`s being served at BBC, which leads me again to why I encouraged BBC to pursue a DR instead of a CR license, which goes more in line with a cafe that will have light-fare for a menu. Full service sit down restaurants should be getting those CR licenses. There are plenty of development projects coming to ward 5 and we don`t want every little (and I mean little) cafe to have the ability to serve booze. We need to limit the establishments that will be serving…this is the reason we have a DR and CR license in the first place. Full service restaurants invest a lot more into their businesses and kitchens, and staff, etc. Let`s face it the city need revenues and giving a CR to a café and not having an available license for a full service place down the line seems out of quack. Giving a CR to a half service restaurant isn`t the way to go.

Now to the bloggers

@Skipper and Manor–this has nothing to do with race or money, it has to do with whom should have a DR and CR license and if that business has been managed well and been a good corporate citizen for DC.

@JY you have some good insights

@ Q St Dude–Did you know that BBC has been running a business without proper permitting now for almost 3 years. That`s now a good corporate citizen. If they were they would have gotten that resolved before they even opened. I know you are new and welcome to Bloomingdale, but I live by a rule, “Believe half of what you see and none of what you hear.“ These facts and documents will be on hand at the next ANC 5C meeting and I suggest you attend so you have a realm of history and facts to see. I agree BBC has been a good coffee shop that has been making money, but a business in “good standing“ is questionable.

@Sally–I agree with you, but BBC will be a half service sit down food service establishment, which is why I suggested they get a DR (beer and wine) which frankly had great support form the ANC commissioners.

@JY–you are correct that petition was given to all patrons of BBC which don`t live in ANC 5C.

@JM–who mention color…it appears you are the racist. People are people the last time I checked, black, white or green with an eyeball in the middle of their head, they are all still voting, residents of DC. You should check yourself!

@Rick–well it`s obvious you are very ignorant. Your obscene language is not called for, and those tow people live right next to BBC and they will be effective and should have a bit more weight than some coffee drinker from Ward 3.

/EW

May 28th, 2010 4:46 pm #18

I support what JY articulated very effectively about the sentiments of existing residents regarding gentrification of neighborhoods. Because neighborhoods are composed of many different types of households (by race/ethnicity, profession, income, family size, age, wealth, education, etc.), each person must choose carefully where to set up residency and live comfortably. Similarly, business owners must conduct market evaluations and review the data to determine the appropriateness of a location to the business`s vision and financial viability prior to moving ahead with plans. Residents do NOT want changes to the neighborhood they bought into imposed upon them without a voice in the matter. That is the heart of the matter with the BBC.

500 signatures on a petition, many coming from people who likely do not live in Bloomingdale, does not constitute a market assessment. Many neighborhood issues have been expressed that ought to give BBC pause as to whether this is the best location for the proposed business model. These include street parking, noise, trash, crime – all of which will impact a several square block radius and not just the intersection of R and 1st ST.

In the present communications environment, a comparatively small number of people have been afforded the opportunity to give input into this business expansion. BBC expects the rest of the neighborhood to live with the imposition of the business expansion. Those residents, myself included, may not want this part (or any part) of Bloomingdale to become neighborhoods surrounding H St NE, or 18th St NW, or Columbia Rd. If that`s what we wanted, we would have moved there in the first place. If BBC wants to be that type of business operation, perhaps it should have done better market research and found a space along those corridors.

/J

May 28th, 2010 5:23 pm #19

@EW So people actually move to Bloomingdale to not be around restaurants or a nice place they can get food with some wine or beer? My friends moved there instead of 18th, Columbia, or other neighborhoods because it was affordable, not because they never wanted to have a place like BBC or otherwise. They saw/see the potential of the neighborhood and the possibility of having their own neighborhood cafes, merchants, maybe even – gasp – a cool bar? As for being imposed upon, it seems as if BBC is going through all the proper channels and people are having their chance to weigh in, both the yea- and naysayers. None of that has to do with market research, it just has to do with the hoops the city has in place. I doubt the people who don`t want BBC to sell alcohol have done a huge amount of market research. Maybe you could do it for them and produce it at one of these meetings.

/Rick Mangus

May 28th, 2010 5:38 pm #20

What is the make-up of the 5C comission, like white, black, so on?

/Sally

May 28th, 2010 6:29 pm #21

Commish: Along the same lines, if the DC gov`t were to inspect your property, would they find not a single building code violation? If they did, shouldn`t you be held to the same high standard you`re trying to hold BBC: namely, that you`re an elected official with illegal conditions at your home?

What Bloomingdale seems to need is some new leadership in their ANCs.

/JY

May 29th, 2010 8:57 am #22

It`s insane how a lot of people commenting on this article jump to overwrought conclusions based on simply-stated opinions. J, for example, conflates EW`s statement [“Those residents, myself included, may not want this part (or any part) of Bloomingdale to become neighborhoods surrounding H St NE, or 18th St NW, or Columbia Rd. If that`s what we wanted, we would have moved there in the first place.“] into some declaration that “people actually move to Bloomingdale to not be around restaurants or a nice place they can get food with some wine or beer“.

First of all, J`s definition of what is “nice“ may NOT be shared by some Bloomingdale residents. By saying this, I do NOT mean that the OPPOSITE of BBC is the paradigm of “nice“ for Bloomingdale residents; I`m just trying to point out that what YOU consider nice is not universally appreciated.

Second, J`s reply doesn`t take into account the people who didn`t “move“ to Bloomingdale — their families may have been there for generations. They didn`t necessarily choose to live there, and they may not have the money to leave.

But even that is beside the point. Regardless of why the residents are in Bloomingdale, they still have a true, vested interest in what goes on there. It`s their home.

What this entire debate should come down to is the fact that communities need to have a meaningful say about what is imposed on their neighborhoods. Their concerns should be taken seriously, addressed with respect, and considered a top priority. When they AREN`T, when they are dismissed callously by people like Manor, Skipper, Rick Mangus, and J, when changes are implemented without their consent, it`s called gentrification. When YOU are the one marginalized, ignored, and called “stupid“ by the people who perpetuate gentrification, you`ll know why it`s awful.

/Stu Davenport

May 29th, 2010 9:49 am #23

1. The BBC certificate of occupancy is for a “restaurant“ with 49 seats. The information above is incorrect.

2. The cafe is licensed as a restaurant, and the kitchen is approved and inspected by DOH and DCRA. The commenter above has never seen the kitchen of the cafe, nor has he reviewed building plans, or set foot in the BBC. His statements are based on false assumptions.

3. There has never been a BZA case for the cafe, nor was a BZA case ever proposed as a part of the BBC development plan. A BZA case is irrelevant for an evening cafe with a CR license.

4. Statements necessarily associating a CR license with a table service restaurant are either misleading or show a lack of understanding of ABRA law. Also, any proposition that a class CR license issued to the BBC would limit the number available to future restaurants is false.

This online debate is continuing to confuse the issues.

If anyone has questions for how the BBC operates you can contact me directly at studavenport.

/Stu Davenport

May 29th, 2010 9:55 am #24

JY- The BBC is owned by a neighborhood resident, and a large majority of the employees are neighborhood residents.

Over 500 of the 600 signatures of support were from residents within walking distance to the cafe. There are also letters of support from all abutting neighbors and residences within 150 feet.

I fully agree with your statements.

/JY

May 29th, 2010 10:41 am #25

Stu, thanks for clarifying, and for your understanding. I hope the conclusion of this debate is equitable for all, and accountable to the varied feedback of Bloomingdale residents.

/Rick Mangus

May 29th, 2010 10:53 am #26

There is nothing at all wrong with gentrification! The Bloomingdale area has been decrepit and run-down for too long, it`s about time for change!

/Marissa Gandee

May 29th, 2010 5:49 pm #27

Stu, I think you and Lana have done an amazing job in building a business that caters to both Bloomingdale and the DC community at large. I hope that you eventually get the go-ahead to start serving alcohol and to continue to build your business. We need more people like you and Lana in this world.

/DE

May 29th, 2010 6:49 pm #28

Rick – Your argument that gentrification is a “good“ thing and your insinuation that it is the only (or at least best)alternative to that which exists in Bloomingdale is counterproductive and incendiary.

If anything, the best thing about a liquor license for the Big Bear is the lack of impact it will have on the neighborhood. Nothing more, nothing less. To make the argument that the Big Bear will facilitate gentrification (and call that a good thing) disrespects those residents who stuck through the neighborhood`s worst, most dangerous times, and sounds like very poorly veiled racism to me. A white neighborhood is not synonymous with a better neighborhood. A safe, secure and friendly neighborhood is a better one, regardless of its composition.