Again, the "experts" rule, but no one really knows what works in a place where they have no knowledge. Largely people in charge have always been far removed from the poverty people face, they aren't in tune with the culture of many foreign born people who also find homes in these areas. Understanding poverty is not taught in a collge class room, not real American poverty because it is considered an anomaly to what they understand as middle class and better people. No one eats out of dumpsters in America, but they do, No one they know has slept under a bridge, but poor people do; living out of your car is somwthing reserved for all night drive in movies, not every night you can't find room in a shelter, like poor people do. Tragedy and turmoil are not everyday occurances for people "in charge" of poverty programs. They enforce rules and regulations which have no time for humanity or exceptions. Not everyone is a chisler or a cheat.
In Cedar Rapids, where the powerful look out for their own, a local bank president was out of a job since his bank got bought out, so the city offered him a job being in charge of "low rent housing". The first thing he did was initiate "credit checks" before renting to people! Imagine that, poor people with credit! In not tolong a period with no one passing the credit checks, vacancies werenot being filled and no rent was being paid as a result. Soon the cities low rent housing started to require repairs but no money was in the till. Unfortunately, our priveledged banker know what to do, since he was in charge and that was to take money from the Fedeeral Housing Projects that had set asside money for repairs on those Federal projects ONLY! Someone blew the whistle on the former bank president, and suddenly the whole city housing board resigned! No one was charged with malfeasence, absolutely nothing happened to any of that board! The City found a new pidgeon to put in charge that they could easily manipulate and suddenly as a result a brand new warehouse that had been converted to over 70 units of low income housing using 4 million dollars of federal money was to expensive for the low income housing board to operate and the city sold it to the company that converted a warehouse two feet away into high dollar condominiums. Not only did they unload the building on them, but out of "gratitude" gave them the adjoining park and garanteed them "Streetscaping". When I asked why they had not offered "Streetscaping" to the rest of the "New Bo" Neighborhood businesses, they told me none of the businesses agreed in writing to do a cost share. When I checked with the President of the Neighborhood he told me that all the paperwork had been filed with the city months ago including the paperwork on the cost sharing. I called the city back and told them what I had learned. Suddenly a meeting between the city and the President of teh Neighborhood happened and "Streetscaping" was offered to all the businesses! So, the facts are out there, the wealthy take advantage of the poor, the same with landlords, and even grocery stores who charge more and blame it on shop lifting and the cost of insurance. Lack of local work that pays well and police who follow proceedures that target people of color, all things big and little that happen in and around these neighborhoods are preventable, if there is a real push to make it happen.
Affordable housing is critical element for our educational system. Children are moving in and out of different schools in Iowa and Illinois as much as 4 or 5 times a year, because their parents are evicted and can't pay the rent. As soon as a reading teacher makes progress with a child, they leave, and another teacher starts all over again. If you can't read, you can't succeed and the connection to poverty is obvious.
Thanks Ed. I argue there is similarity between economic hardship in urban and rural/small town Iowa. While rural Iowa may not have the same depressing, deteriorating apartment buildings as in urban areas, housing stock can be similarly crumbling or declining. In addition to housing, jobs, access to health care, and other fundamentals, like child care are lacking across these demographics. I do think there are examples where community leaders can tell a different story of success in small town Iowa, that could be replicated in urban Iowa. I even think ISU Extension could be challenged to provide ways to transfer success.
Thanks Ed.Our local policy makers should read and reflect on why NIMBY remains a problem.Developers and Realtors want to assure investors, property values will remain high as long as “those people including low wage earners “ are housed elsewhere. That’s why HUD was created but is also catering to developers who concentrate on “affluent housing” which limits lower wage earner apartments.
Unfortunately, resistance to have a “.poor” neighbor remains a constant problem.
Again, the "experts" rule, but no one really knows what works in a place where they have no knowledge. Largely people in charge have always been far removed from the poverty people face, they aren't in tune with the culture of many foreign born people who also find homes in these areas. Understanding poverty is not taught in a collge class room, not real American poverty because it is considered an anomaly to what they understand as middle class and better people. No one eats out of dumpsters in America, but they do, No one they know has slept under a bridge, but poor people do; living out of your car is somwthing reserved for all night drive in movies, not every night you can't find room in a shelter, like poor people do. Tragedy and turmoil are not everyday occurances for people "in charge" of poverty programs. They enforce rules and regulations which have no time for humanity or exceptions. Not everyone is a chisler or a cheat.
In Cedar Rapids, where the powerful look out for their own, a local bank president was out of a job since his bank got bought out, so the city offered him a job being in charge of "low rent housing". The first thing he did was initiate "credit checks" before renting to people! Imagine that, poor people with credit! In not tolong a period with no one passing the credit checks, vacancies werenot being filled and no rent was being paid as a result. Soon the cities low rent housing started to require repairs but no money was in the till. Unfortunately, our priveledged banker know what to do, since he was in charge and that was to take money from the Fedeeral Housing Projects that had set asside money for repairs on those Federal projects ONLY! Someone blew the whistle on the former bank president, and suddenly the whole city housing board resigned! No one was charged with malfeasence, absolutely nothing happened to any of that board! The City found a new pidgeon to put in charge that they could easily manipulate and suddenly as a result a brand new warehouse that had been converted to over 70 units of low income housing using 4 million dollars of federal money was to expensive for the low income housing board to operate and the city sold it to the company that converted a warehouse two feet away into high dollar condominiums. Not only did they unload the building on them, but out of "gratitude" gave them the adjoining park and garanteed them "Streetscaping". When I asked why they had not offered "Streetscaping" to the rest of the "New Bo" Neighborhood businesses, they told me none of the businesses agreed in writing to do a cost share. When I checked with the President of the Neighborhood he told me that all the paperwork had been filed with the city months ago including the paperwork on the cost sharing. I called the city back and told them what I had learned. Suddenly a meeting between the city and the President of teh Neighborhood happened and "Streetscaping" was offered to all the businesses! So, the facts are out there, the wealthy take advantage of the poor, the same with landlords, and even grocery stores who charge more and blame it on shop lifting and the cost of insurance. Lack of local work that pays well and police who follow proceedures that target people of color, all things big and little that happen in and around these neighborhoods are preventable, if there is a real push to make it happen.
Affordable housing is critical element for our educational system. Children are moving in and out of different schools in Iowa and Illinois as much as 4 or 5 times a year, because their parents are evicted and can't pay the rent. As soon as a reading teacher makes progress with a child, they leave, and another teacher starts all over again. If you can't read, you can't succeed and the connection to poverty is obvious.
Thanks Ed. I argue there is similarity between economic hardship in urban and rural/small town Iowa. While rural Iowa may not have the same depressing, deteriorating apartment buildings as in urban areas, housing stock can be similarly crumbling or declining. In addition to housing, jobs, access to health care, and other fundamentals, like child care are lacking across these demographics. I do think there are examples where community leaders can tell a different story of success in small town Iowa, that could be replicated in urban Iowa. I even think ISU Extension could be challenged to provide ways to transfer success.
Thanks Ed.Our local policy makers should read and reflect on why NIMBY remains a problem.Developers and Realtors want to assure investors, property values will remain high as long as “those people including low wage earners “ are housed elsewhere. That’s why HUD was created but is also catering to developers who concentrate on “affluent housing” which limits lower wage earner apartments.
Unfortunately, resistance to have a “.poor” neighbor remains a constant problem.