query: poverty concentration and housing

[colist-admin at comm-org.utoledo.edu]

[ed:  thanks to Bob for more interesting discussion on the concentration of 
poverty issue.]

From: Bobusfop at aol.com

On the 'concentration of poverty' argument, it seems that the city of
Minneapolis is letting itself off the hook.  Aren't these people poor WITHIN
Minneapolis?  Why should their answer "it's the suburbs turn" be considered
anything more than a non sequitur of an answer?

More to the point, however, I find it unlikely that concentration of poverty
is good for people.  They'll always get the worst city services, education,
etc., given that reality; I think that Nicholas Lehmann, in a two-part
Atlantic article a few years ago gave pretty persuasive support for the
contention that it's not a good place for people to live more generally,
also.

Why not try to take on this issue as one which could create more housing for
persons of multiple income levels?  For instance, a campaign to provide
affordable housing could also include that firefighters/police would have
some special incentive to live among poorer folks.  I think that there was an
effort like this a few years ago in Oakland, CA, for instance.  There are
such good nonprofit housing organizations out there which can really very
effectively eliminate the NIMBY response of  'hurting property values' - AND,
by economically integrating neighborhoods, the inevitable loss of political
consideration for the above mentioned services is harder to happen.  What
about creating individual housing units, all identical to each other, with
different levels of subsidy &/or forgivable loans, et. al., to not only help
poor people, but those with more income?

I hope this is of some value; good luck in your efforts.

Bob Untiedt, an organizer with the San Francisco Organizing Project.