Last week’s blog was dedicated to the release of new data in the 2018 Out of Reach report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. The blog discussed the need for more housing assistance, including from the private sector to decrease housing costs and close the gap. This week’s blog takes on the second part of the Out of Reach Report: the problem of low wages, the growth of low wage work and need to address wages in addition to housing to close the gap.
In 2016, we co-authored a blog, dedicated to this topic with the title, “In 2016, housing remains out of reach for many”. We have updated the year to 2018, but the title is the same and the gap between housing costs and income is the widest yet. This blog post provides a high level overview of the findings from the report and what it means for Charlotte-Mecklenburg. Mecklenburg County Community Support Services has outlined additional policy and practice interventions for consideration in the “So, What” section at the end of the post.
On Friday, June 1, UNC Greensboro hosted the Innovations in Planning for Better Community Housing and Health Symposium. The goal of the Symposium was to “explore the use of data and cross-sector collaborations to develop healthy neighborhoods facing the greatest barriers to good health”. This blog post is dedicated to two ideas we took away from other communities for consideration in Charlotte-Mecklenburg as we work to prevent and end homelessness and promote housing sustainability throughout the community.
This post is devoted to linking the information from all three reports. Read more to get the highlights from all three reports and access a new, one-page Fact Sheet that takes the essential information from the three report briefs. It also includes new information from The Eviction Lab, which was released in April 2018 by Princeton University and Matthew Desmond, author of Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City (2016). In addition to information the Fact Sheet provides ways for you to get involved in big changes that can reduce and prevent evictions in the community.
The UNC Charlotte Urban Institute and Mecklenburg County Community Support Services released Charlotte-Mecklenburg Evictions Part 3: One-month Snapshot of Eviction Court Records Wednesday, May 23, 2018. Evictions Part 3: One-Month Snapshot of Eviction Court Records is the final report in a series on evictions in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. This report focuses on how and why tenants are evicted and the cost of evictions for landlords and tenants. This series marks the first time local eviction data from court records have been analyzed and reported. Read the full reflection to see the report findings and find out what it means for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
On Wednesday, May 23, the report, “Charlotte-Mecklenburg Evictions Part 3: One-month Snapshot of Eviction Court Records” will be released to the public – the third report in a series focused on evictions in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. The report marks the first time local eviction data from court records have been analyzed and reported. Read more to learn what will be covered and why it matters.
As part of Mecklenburg County’s Capital Improvement Program, the Main Library located in uptown Charlotte will be replaced and closed for several years. Early in the planning stages, Library and County officials recognized that the Library is an important component of an ecosystem that supports Charlotte’s homeless population, in direct alignment with its mission to improve lives and build a stronger community. They further identified that the needs of the homeless would need to be addressed in the space and programming for the new Main Library. To better understand those needs, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library and Mecklenburg County Community Support Services partnered to conduct a survey in September 2017. This survey was designed to understand the impact of the closing on library users and determine what resources are most valued by individuals who use the Main Library every day.
Emergency departments frequently provide care to patients who are experiencing homelessness. They are open 24/7 and are required by law to treat anyone who presents for care, regardless of whether the person is experiencing a medical emergency or has the ability to pay. During the Point-in-Time count emergency waiting rooms throughout the county were included as sites to conduct the survey.
Growing up in the 1960’s like I did, you had to be living under a rock not to be affected by the ultra-compelling and ultra-unfair conditions of racial discrimination and racial segregation in U.S. cities. The cause of those who fought against these inequities was gripping and undeniable – the folks who stood up were on the right side of the issue, even at a time when not many were willing to stand up. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968. And the Federal Fair Housing Act was enacted on April 11, 1968 – one week later. No coincidence. Read more to learn about the significance of the Fair Housing Act 50 years later.
The Point-in-Time Count is most often talked about in terms of the data collected: How many people were unsheltered? Is homelessness in our community increasing or decreasing? What’s not discussed as often are the stories of the people behind the data, and the direct impact the Point-in-Time Count can have in ending someone’s homelessness. The Point-in-Time Count provides a dedicated day in which street outreach staff know they will have the added capacity to actively seek out all people experiencing homelessness outside across Mecklenburg County and ask about who they are and what they need.
