La Goyco: Mapping Displacement
Project Overview
Cerca Solutions partnered with La Goyco to create a comprehensive GIS story map examining the intersection of short-term rental proliferation and tax incentive policies on neighborhood health in San Juan, specifically focusing on the Calle Loíza neighborhood. This project exemplifies our commitment to using data visualization and spatial analysis to illuminate complex community development challenges as a method of highlighting the lived experiences of residents facing displacement pressures.
The story map, titled "Datos Sobre la Salud de la Calle Loíza" (Data on the Health of Calle Loíza), provides a critical examination of how external investment policies and tourism development patterns affect neighborhood stability, housing affordability, and community cohesion in historically Puerto Rican neighborhoods.
The Challenge
Puerto Rico's Calle Loíza represents a microcosm of broader gentrification pressures facing the island. Once designated as a gastronomic district in 2018, the area has experienced rapid transformation driven by multiple converging forces:
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Act 60 Tax Incentives: Federal tax benefits attracting mainland investors and residents, creating upward pressure on real estate prices
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Short-Term Rental Explosion: Dramatic increase in Airbnb properties converting long-term housing stock to tourist accommodations
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Infrastructure Investment: Public improvements that, while beneficial, contribute to property value increases that can displace longtime residents
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Tourism Development: Commercial development that serves visitors but may not align with community needs or economic opportunities for existing residents
Our client needed a data-driven tool to document these changes, quantify their impacts, and provide evidence for policy advocacy and community organizing efforts.
Our Approach
Drawing on Cerca Solutions' expertise in systems thinking and community-centered data analysis, we developed a multi-layered GIS story map that integrates quantitative spatial data with qualitative community insights. Our methodology included:
Spatial Data Integration: We compiled and analyzed multiple datasets, including property records, zoning laws, demographic changes, flood zone regulations, and short-term rental registrations, to create a comprehensive neighborhood mapping that reveals patterns invisible in any single data source.
Community-Centered Analysis: Rather than imposing external metrics of neighborhood "health," we worked with community partners to identify indicators that reflect residents' actual experiences and priorities, ensuring our analysis honored local knowledge while providing rigorous documentation.
Temporal Analysis: We tracked changes over time to demonstrate how policy decisions and market forces have accelerated since Act 60's implementation, providing clear before-and-after documentation of neighborhood transformation.
Accessible Visualization: The story map format allows complex spatial relationships to be communicated clearly to diverse audiences, from community members to policymakers, supporting both grassroots organizing and policy advocacy efforts.
Key Findings and Impact
The completed story map reveals critical insights about the relationship between tax policy, tourism development, and community displacement:
Housing Market Transformation: Our analysis documented the conversion of long-term rental housing to short-term accommodations, quantifying the reduction in available housing for residents while mapping concentrations of Airbnb properties.
Economic Displacement Patterns: The data visualization shows how tax incentives designed to attract investment have created economic pressures that push out existing residents, particularly in areas with historic and cultural significance.
Infrastructure and Investment Paradox: The mapping reveals how public investments intended to benefit communities can accelerate gentrification when not coupled with anti-displacement protections.
Community Resilience Mapping: Beyond documenting challenges, the story map identifies community assets, organizing capacity, and potential intervention points for preserving neighborhood character and affordability.
Technical Execution
This project showcased Cerca Solutions' technical capabilities in geospatial analysis and data storytelling:
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Advanced GIS Analysis: Multi-layered spatial analysis combining property data, demographic information, business patterns, and housing market indicators
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Data Integration: Synthesis of information from multiple government agencies, community organizations, and public databases into a coherent analytical framework
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Bilingual Accessibility: Content developed in Spanish to ensure primary accessibility for affected community members
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Interactive Visualization: Story map format enabling users to explore data relationships and geographic patterns at multiple scales
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Mobile Optimization: Designed for accessibility across devices to support community organizing and policy advocacy efforts
Broader Implications
This project demonstrates how rigorous spatial analysis can support community organizing and policy advocacy in historically disinvested areas. The story map provides evidence for policy interventions while honoring community knowledge about neighborhood change. It exemplifies our approach of using technical expertise to amplify community voices rather than replace them.
The work also reflects Cerca Solutions' commitment to Puerto Rico and our understanding that effective community development requires tools that help residents document and respond to systemic pressures on their neighborhoods. By making complex data relationships visible and accessible, we support communities in advocating for development that preserves neighborhood character while creating genuine economic opportunity for existing residents.
Looking Forward
This project represents part of Cerca Solutions' broader commitment to supporting community development in Puerto Rico. As we continue expanding our work on the island, we bring both technical capabilities and a deep understanding of how external policies affect neighborhood stability. Our approach ensures that data analysis serves community organizing rather than replacing it, providing tools that help residents advocate for development approaches that honor both their history and their aspirations for neighborhood improvement.
The Calle Loíza story map stands as an example of how spatial analysis can support community resilience, providing evidence for policy advocacy while documenting the knowledge and strength that already exist within neighborhoods facing external pressures.
"La colaboración para el desarrollo de un Storymap con Cerca Solutions fue muy importante y fundamental para nuestra organización, Taller Comunidad La Goyco. La colaboración se enfocó en desarrollar un storymap sobre datos sobre el desplazamiento en nuestra comunidad con el propósito de compartir los datos con la comunidad y desarrollar estrategias para enfrentar el desplazamiento. El equipo de Cerca Solutions fue muy atento, disponible y responsable para el acompañamiento en definir el problema, identificar fuentes de datos, analizar los datos y visualizar los datos. La comunicación siempre fue efectiva y abierta para definir los parámetros y los tiempos de la colaboración. Además, fueron muy abiertos a recibir recomendaciones y atender los insumos en el producto final. Taller Comunidad La Goyco agradece la colaboración con Cerca Solutions. Sin duda alguna, recomendamos que otras organizaciones puedan beneficiarse del expertise del equipo de Cerca Solutions."
