(king5.com) SEATTLE – As far as Lottie Cross is concerned, there is no Central District in Seattle anymore.

Gentrification has changed the character of the historically African American neighborhood.

“It’s phasing out,” she said.

But as condos sprout up on street corners and new white, middle class families move in, some say an integral part of the community has been victimized. Black businesses struggle even as new wealth enters their neighborhood.

Cross is part of a nonprofit organization that’s working to sustain African American businesses, both in Seattle and throughout the Pacific Northwest.

The Black Dollar Days Task Force provides black businesses with guidance, financial support and most of all – exposure.

It’s an important cause, said Robert Jeffrey, who founded the task force. He moved to Seattle in 1986.

“Gentrification has eaten up most of the businesses that were here when I came,” he said. “The climate is dismal.” (more…)