Have you been to Chelsea lately? A lot has changed in the last few years.

Gentrification is always part of the pattern of economic growth and this most recent expansion is no exception. First it was the Seaport, then Southie, then East Boston. And now Chelsea has been swept up in the tide of progress.

If we’re being charitable, tiny Chelsea – which holds 38,000 residents in 2.5 square miles – is best known for its gritty character and history of housing generations of immigrants. If we’re being honest, Chelsea is synonymous with corruption and municipal mismanagement.

After emerging from receivership in the mid-1990s, the little city on the hill came back and weathered the recession with its finances intact, but Bostonians have long memories and continued to eye their neighbor with barely concealed disdain. (“Barely concealed” may in fact be overly generous.)

But then a funny thing happened – in 2013 then-Gov. Deval Patrick announced the Silver Line would be coming to Chelsea. Combine that with skyrocketing home prices and suddenly the little neighbor on the hill looked a lot more appealing.

And now, just four years later, luxury condo apartment complexes are fully leased and condo conversions in old industrial settings sell out before opening. It’s time to stop sneering at Chelsea – and time to start looking at condos.