25% NOLA Public Housing Residents Lost

Saturday August 29 marks the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's destruction of the US Gulf Coast.  The pre-storm problem of deep poverty and racial inequality has worsened, and gone largely unreported.  Those of us at Change.org have an opportunity to reverse that trend.  It begins by educating ourselves on the enduring struggles down there to provide a safe, affordable place to live for all those who lost their homes due to a lethal combination of a natural disaster and wrongheaded public policy.  To start:  HUD cannot locate over 25% of public housing residents who were living in the now-demolished "Big Four" projects prior to the storm.

More, including what you can do, after the jump.

In hearings convened in New Orleans last week by Rep. Maxine Waters of California, developers, advocates and residents listed a range of problems that are stalling the rebuilding of desperately needed housing.  Only 37% of the pre-storm affordable housing stock is being rebuilt in this disproportionately poor city, and the 1,600 or so units that are scheduled to replace the 4,500 demolished PH units are delayed due to recalcitrant investors and now worthless tax credits.  These tax credits were left out of stimulus legislation that would have filled the financial gap needed to start construction.  Worse, only 400 of the 1,600 units will be affordable to former PH families.

Missing residents, missing units.    I guess it makes sense that we're not covering Gulf Coast poverty in the media when we're working so hard to pretend it's not there.

There are things you can do, though the payoff may not feel immediate.  You can contribute to The Advancement Project, Enterprise Community Partners or Providence Community Housing.  The Advancement Project has represented the rights of displaced tenants for over 3 years; Enterprise and Providence are working to provide one-for-one replacement for all the demolished units at the Lafitte development.  Your $$, even the smallest amounts, will go a long way for The Advancement Project or Providence to continue their work directly with public housing residents.

You can call HUD Assistant Secretary for Public & Indian Housing Sandra Henriquez, and tell her you want to know what HUD's plan is for locating missing public housing residents.  Secretary Henriquez ran the Boston Housing Authority for years and is highly regarded as strengthening public housing in our city.  She can be reached at 202-708-0950.  You might also consider leaving a message for her boss, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, who will be speaking at an invitation-only breakfast for housing advocates in New Orleans on Thursday.  Call him at 202-708-0417 and tell him you want to see one-for-one unit replacement for all public housing residents.  Vouchers are not sufficient.

Why not contact Rep. Maxine Waters and thank her for her relentless support for rebuilding public housing fairly and equitably?  Her office could make good use of nationwide public support.

Lastly, consider supporting other public housing activists in your community.  Never forget, New Orleans is not the exception, it's the vivid example of what's happening to affordable housing in neighborhoods nationwide.

(Photo of New Orleans public housing advocates by Karen Apricot New Orleans)