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Title: Beyond the Narrative: A Case Study Analysis of Housing Policy Change in a Midwestern State

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2012

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Abstract: In recent decades, federal housing policy has attempted to address problems associated with concentrated poverty through programs that promote geographic mobility and the dispersal of low income households. However, while cities such as Chicago are redeveloping public housing communities and dispersing poor households, some Midwestern communities are preemptively passing legislation that would prevent a diaspora of low-income migrants from moving to their communities to obtain housing assistance. Specifically, some public housing authorities are creating jurisdictional waiting list preferences by housing authority; effectively reducing the ability of out-of-jurisdiction applicants to receive housing assistance in their community. This paper poses two questions: 1. Can the adoption of jurisdictional preference policies by housing authorities be connected to a perception that there is an influx of low-income migrants from Chicago? And 2. How does this phenomenon fit into the larger context of mobility/dispersal oriented housing policy?This study examines four rural/small housing authorities within a single Midwestern state which have adopted jurisdictional preference policies. Using interviews with housing authorities and affordable housing organizations as well as content analysis of government documents and newspaper articles, I investigated the narratives of migration related to housing assistance and policy change in each community. Key findings reveal that the Chicago migration narrative is present within these communities and organizations, and has significantly affected the regulatory and political environment in which they operate; relating to community support, political context, and administrative duties. These factors, combined with funding shortfalls, have contributed to the adoption of jurisdictional preference policies. Although these policies can be seen as an effort to give primary preference to jurisdictional residents in a landscape where the poor are allowed ever increasing mobility and choice in residence, it also gives some insight into how the organizations themselves are adapting to the reality of a more mobile cohort of low-income households.

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Authors: Roberts, Jennifer

Publisher: Iowa State University

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Housing and Segregation

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