Gentrification, as any Boston renter knows, is a double-edged sword. As old, dilapidated buildings give way to new development — transforming previously unsafe areas into relatively crime-free, trendy hot spots — residents who have long defined a neighborhood often get the boot.

That, at least, sums up the fear among many in Chinatown these days. Community leaders and residents have watched with increasing trepidation as fresh façades rise around them. First came Millennium Place, with its 35 stories of luxury condos that sell for $400,000 to $6 million apiece. Now, there’s the proposed Liberty Place, a 28-story high-rise embraced by City Hall.

For two years, residents have fought this latest development, which they claim violates zoning restrictions regulating height and density, as well as the city’s own Chinatown master plan, or guide for neighborhood growth. " The city has stifled our voice, " explains Kye Leung, of the Chinese Progressive Association (CPA). " [Officials] have insisted that the majority of the community supports Liberty Place. "

Last weekend, Leung and advocates set out to prove the city wrong. Three community groups, including the CPA, organized a " non-binding " referendum on community development. They borrowed ballot boxes and voting booths from the city’s Election Commission, which allows neighborhoods to hold community referendums to gauge opinions on issues. The count shows a neighborhood in opposition to Liberty Place. Of the 923 residents who cast ballots — 18 percent of the 5000 or so eligible voters — 669 voted against the plan, while 220 voted for it.

Mark Maloney of the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA), which is overseeing the development, dismisses the results. The referendum, he says, " was the opposition’s method for conveying their opposition. " Since the city agency signed off on the project last June, it has received 1400 signatures from Chinatown residents supporting the project. Opponents, Maloney argues, " are the minority. "

He contends that the BRA has listened to opponents. To date, the agency has scaled down the proposal — eliminating two stories and reducing the building’s size by five percent — because of opposition. Yet that’s as far as it can go. Says Maloney, " If it were further scaled down, it’d no longer be financially viable. " As for gentrification, he views the trend as positive. What opponents fail to recognize, he maintains, is that the majority of housing in Chinatown — 85 percent, according to the BRA — is permanently affordable. Liberty Place will provide more affordable housing (66 units, to be exact), while adding market-rate units targeted to families making an annual salary of $70,000. " This project will be good for downtown Boston, " he concludes.

Still, opponents aren’t about to give up the fight. " We are exploring all alternatives, " Leung says, " maybe even a lawsuit. " For them, the stalemate over Liberty Place calls to mind a similar battle in 1993, when the BRA wanted to construct a parking garage for the nearby New England Medical Center on an empty lot. Back then, as now, activists held a referendum in which residents registered opposition. Back then, as now, the city downplayed the vote’s significance. But in the end, a mixed-rate housing development went up on that Chinatown parcel instead.

So, says Leung, " We’re looking seriously at all our options. "