What happened to displaced public housing residents?
December 2, 2008 at 1:52 pm by Mara Shalhoup in News
East Lake Meadows, in the midst of demolition.
Atlanta was the first city in the country to build a public housing project. By 2010, it will likely be the first to eradicate every last one of them.
At a high point (literally, though not figuratively), the number of public housing units in Atlanta numbered more than 14,000. If all goes according to plan, there soon will be none — aside from a handful of apartments for the elderly and infirm. Most of the Atlanta Housing Authority’s projects already have been replaced by mixed-income communities, which do wonders for reducing crime and improving neighborhoods. But they don’t offer the same assistance to the down-and-out that the AHA projects did.
The big question about this massive urban renewal initiative has been: What happened to all the low-income families who lived in public housing? Did the vouchers they received, for reduced rent, help better their lives? There is some evidence that suggests that many former resident’s lives were, in fact, improved.
Researchers at Georgia State University are trying to find out if that’s true.
A team from GSU’s Sociology Department recently launched an ambitious study that will follow nearly 400 public housing residents who are about to be displaced in the latest — and, likely, final — round of public housing demolition.
According to a preliminary report, released yesterday:
We plan to follow these residents after they are relocated for a minimum of two years to examine how relocation impacts their lives: Do they end up in better neighborhoods and have improved living conditions?
The families currently live in Bankhead Courts, Bowen Homes, Herndon Homes, Hollywood Courts, Palmer House and Roosevelt House.
The report also contains some interesting stats. For instance, 10 percent of public housing residents say they ended up in public housing because they lost their home or job. Obviously, the number of Atlanta’s jobless and homeless is all but certain to rise in the midst of this full-blown recession.
Because the economy is currently imploding, one of the conclusions in the report is that “eliminating [public housing units] altogether could inadvertently lead to an increase in homelessness.”
One of its recommendations states:
Do not demolish all the remaining family public housing. Keep some units available for low-income residents who have no other options. Another option would be to develop some form of transitional public housing for those who lose their homes or jobs due to economic downturns, who need a short-term helping hand.
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:58 pm
It’s absolutely cruel and inhumane to force someone to live in public housing. Where there is a will there is a way. These people who have been swept under the rug for decades must be moved up and out and the rat-holes razed.
December 3rd, 2008 at 9:45 am
You don’t need a study to find out where those folks went, just drive down Tara Boulevard in Clayton County.
December 4th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
As Ms. Shalhoup implies — this is a very complex issue. Residents who are highly motivated to move will likely do well, but those with special needs and compromised health may not. I’m one of the authors of the GSU study cited and one of our goals is to document the varied outcomes among relocated residents given their present circumstances. Previous relocations were mostly within the Atlanta city limits to the far southwest — near Fort McPherson. Some did move to Clayton but not the all.