RALEIGH, N.C. — Gentrification is something you hear about when it comes to growing cities. It’s happening across the country, including in North Carolina.

What You Need To Know

  • A Southeast Raleigh developer is giving back by building a new community space

  • Raleigh developer James Montague is working on a project called Montague Plaza

  • The project will include retail spaces and a STEM center for Southeast Raleigh High School students

  • Montague Plaza is expected to open next summer 

Gentrification happens when neighborhoods experience continued economic growth through rising property values and property development. This can change the traditional makeup of the area and cause people with more money to move in and push out poor or working-class communities.

Raleigh developer James Montague is trying to change this narrative. He is the president and CEO of F7 International Development. Montague said he’s focused on bringing more affordable housing options to communities. He’s also building retail and community spaces.

“The types of things that we do, there is no geographical boundary,” Montague said. He added he’s done projects like this in Mississippi and Africa in the past.

One project he is working on is Montague Plaza, in Southeast Raleigh, where he’s from.

“So, to be able to have this in the neighborhood that I grew up in, it’s a special kind of feeling,” Montague said.

The building will include retail spaces, salons, a restaurant and even a STEM center for Southeast Raleigh High School students.

“The idea for this came from me wanting to establish a legacy for someone from this community to actually be able to give back and do positive things right here and encourage younger people,” Montague said.

Student will learn things from cybersecurity to entrepreneurship.

Montague said he is trying to establish places where people can stay in their communities. Often in areas that are close to downtown, like Southeast Raleigh, people get gentrified out, he said.

The Southeast Raleigh native added it’s natural for communities to change. However, residents need to be more cognizant of how we think about the people who are born and raised in that area.

He expressed the belief that although change is not always negative, we must prioritize empathy and inclusivity in the development process to ensure people feel involved in the changes. The hope is that Montague Plaza will help that awareness.

Montague Plaza is expected to open next summer.