HYDE SQ.—The academic study of Whole Foods Market’s local impact will focus on the Latino community and gentrification.
The study is being called “Gentrification and Representation: Hi-Lo, Whole Foods and Latinos in Jamaica Plain,” according to Pablo Goldbarg, a spokesperson for the University of Massachusetts Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy, which is conducting the project.
The case study, led by Hyde Square resident and sociology professor Dr. Glenn Jacobs, will examine “the transition from a local Latino-serving market to a multinational organic foods store,” Goldbarg said.
Topics the study will address include “how the needs and opinions of local ethno-racial groups have been represented” and “the ongoing local gentrification process,” he said. The study is in the early planning stages.
Whole Foods controversially replaced the local Hi-Lo grocery store at 413 Centre St. last year in the heart of JP’s Latino community.