Building healthy, affordable housing in North Carolina.
نویسندگان
چکیده
When most people hear the words affordable housing, they picture old-style urban public housing with apartments stacked end-to-end, replete with graffiti and shadylooking characters, unkempt and marked by a general malaise. Nothing seems healthy about it. But today’s affordable housing is different. Successful projects are well-designed, built to a reasonable scale, and have landscaping and amenities similar to those of other apartment communities or subdivisions. Although the public sector is essential for financing projects, many municipalities prefer to partner with private nonprofit and for-profit developers who have a mission of ensuring that their projects add value to and promote socioeconomic diversity in the communities in which they are located, recognizing that it is in their business interest to do so. North Carolina is fortunate to have built strong public and private support for developers of affordable housing over the years, particularly community development corporations like the nonprofit organization in Raleigh that we work for, DHIC, Inc. Local and regional banks, the philanthropic community, and intermediary support structures such as the North Carolina Community Development Initiative have helped create a strong pipeline of investment and political support for affordable housing. But it is getting harder to develop affordable housing. Federal subsidies are shrinking, and competition is growing. The mortgage lending crisis has left many hardworking but lower-wage workers unable to repay their mortgages, resulting in a record number of foreclosures that will affect not just the families who are evicted but the lifeblood of rural and urban communities. As the economy has shrunk, so has support and empathy for people of lesser means. Every community needs a diverse stock of housing for renters and homeowners to attract and retain a sustainable workforce along the entire wage continuum. Three kinds of affordable communities are particularly important if we also are to ensure the health and viability of families and individuals, young and old alike: supportive housing, housing for seniors, and affordable family apartments. Supportive housing serves very low-income people with mental illness, a history of addiction, or some other disability that has prevented them from holding a job and staying connected to family and community support systems. These housing developments generally feature efficiency apartments and have live-in management and embedded social service providers who can help such individuals navigate the systems whose support they need to stay healthy. DHIC has built 2 such communities in Raleigh, partnering with Wake County Human Services to provide quality services in a safe and friendly environment. Residents are more economically and medically stable and less likely to experience another bout of homelessness than are individuals living in temporary shelters or other transitional environments. There are never enough affordable apartments for
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ورودعنوان ژورنال:
- North Carolina medical journal
دوره 73 5 شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 2012