WILLEMSTAD – The transformation of Otrobanda through initiatives such as the Kaya Kaya Street Festival has made the historic neighborhood safer, more attractive and economically valuable, but researchers warn that the same success could eventually make it increasingly difficult for lower-income residents to remain there.
New academic research by Corina Regales of the University of Curaçao and Ilja Simons of Breda University of Applied Sciences identifies gentrification as one of the potential unintended consequences of Otrobanda's revitalization.
Since Kaya Kaya began in 2018, vacant properties have been activated, streets improved, murals created and new economic activity attracted to the neighborhood.
That transformation has also increased interest in Otrobanda's real estate.
Interviewees participating in the research reported substantial increases in property values. Some asking prices for monumental buildings were described as "crazy."
There are also reports of property owners holding out for higher bidders, while residential properties are increasingly being converted into Airbnb and other short-term tourist accommodations.
At the same time, demand from people who want to live in Otrobanda is increasing precisely because the neighborhood has become more attractive.
The researchers say this creates a classic risk of gentrification: investment improves a neighborhood and raises its economic value, but rising property prices and rents can eventually place the original, often less affluent population under pressure.
That creates a paradox for Otrobanda.
Many improvements were intended to make the neighborhood better for the people already living there. But if the resulting increase in property values makes housing less affordable, those same residents could eventually struggle to remain in the community they helped sustain.
Tourism creates a similar dilemma.
Otrobanda's murals, art walks, festivals and cultural character bring more visitors into the neighborhood, generating income for restaurants, tour guides and creative entrepreneurs.
However, increased tourism demand can also make properties more financially attractive as vacation rentals than as homes for permanent residents, potentially further reducing the housing supply.
The research also identifies concerns about commercialization. Some interviewees believe Kaya Kaya has become too large or too commercial, while others question who ultimately receives the financial benefits generated by increasing property values.
The researchers note that Kaya Kaya's organizers themselves have real estate interests in Otrobanda and that this has generated concern among some interviewees. The study does not conclude that there is a conflict of interest, but records that such a perception exists among some stakeholders.
Despite those concerns, the researchers stress that the impact of Kaya Kaya should not be viewed as exclusively negative.
Residents report improvements in safety, social interaction, neighborhood pride and economic activity. The initiative has also demonstrated how temporary use of vacant properties and public spaces can stimulate permanent improvements.
The problem, according to the researchers, is that a festival cannot determine who ultimately benefits from the economic transformation it helps create.
That requires government policy, spatial planning and broader public intervention.
The authors therefore call for policies that combine economic development with protection for affordable housing, local businesses and a socially diverse population.
Without such measures, increasing property prices, short-term tourist rentals, commercialization and gentrification could eventually undermine some of the social benefits generated by Otrobanda's regeneration.
The debate surrounding Kaya Kaya may therefore be entering a different phase. The question is no longer simply whether the initiative has changed Otrobanda. The research indicates that it clearly has.
The more difficult question is who will ultimately benefit from that transformation — and whether longtime residents will still have a place in the Otrobanda that emerges from it.