July 2011

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    Looking Ahead: Shelterforce’s 36th Anniversary Issue

    In the latest issue of Shelterforce, we examine housing and community development not only by looking back, but also by offering critical analysis for the future in a way that can only be done by individuals with new, fresh perspectives. The occasion, of course, is Shelterforce’s 36th anniversary. Launched in 1975 amid profound problems facing distressed communities that struggled to find decent housing and opportunity, Shelterforce sought to examine and promote solutions to these problems that were clearly not going away any time soon. Shelterforce, as a forum for covering and addressing these issues, often features seasoned practitioners, academics, and other noted policymakers and thinkers in the field, but this time around, we thought it would be good to have individuals who aren’t part of the everyday policy dialogue featured here—specifically, we wanted to hear from the people out in our neighborhoods, on the ground, and making a difference. In keeping with that “36” theme, our cover feature, 6 Under 36, comprises six essays from six community developers from around the country who are, of course, all under the age of 36. This feature provides some valuable insight because our contributors balance pragmatic professionalism with the idealism that brought them to the community development world in the first place. As Janelle Chan, executive director of the Boston-based Asian Community Development Corporation writes, the importance of maintaining an “activist mindset” while “identifying what the community realistically has control over” is essential in tackling challenges facing communities. more

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    “Detroitism”: What’s the Role for Community Developers?

    Guernica, a self-described “magazine of art and politics,” has a fascinating essay by Wayne State University professor John Patrick Leary about the “ruin porn” being made in Detroit, and the backlash boosterism to it. About the “Detroit Laments” being produced by outsiders seeking meaning in Detroit’s crumbing grandeur, Leary says: “One often finds oneself asking of . . . all ruin photographs, first, ‘What happened?’ followed swiftly by, down to their lack of interest in the human inhabitants of the city. But it’s a bit more than that. These photos of uninhabited ruined spaces do little more than confirm what the most casual observer already knows about Detroit and cities like it.” He explores the lack of context, history, and real people in how these ruins are usually presented, and argues that “Despite their differences, the common problem with many of the Lamenters and Utopians is that “What’s your point?” This comes partly from the awkwardness of the photographers’ aestheticism and postmodern detachment, which jars with the social violence of the history being depicted, and it’s partly both see Detroit as an exception to the contemporary United States, rather than as one of its exemplary places.” more

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    The Just City

    Yesterday was the second of three, day-long symposia being held this year by the Ford Foundation to celebrate its 75h anniversary. This one, subtitled “A New Geography of Opportunity,” was put on by Ford’s Economic Opportunities division and focused on…

  • Mortgage Resolution Fund Approved

    In expected, but still very exciting, good news, Treasury has approved the Illinois Housing Development Authority’s application to apply Hardest Hit Funds to the Mortgage Resolution Fund developed by Mercy Portfolio Services. MRF is now operating as a partnership between…

  • House Subcommittee Votes to Eliminate Housing Trust Fund

    A House subcommittee voted to stamp out the National Housing Trust Fund this week, signaling a very difficult road ahead for fund advocates. Of course, the fund, a flagship objective of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, has never actually…

  • Is This What Gov. Cuomo Meant by ‘Stronger’ Rent Laws?

    The latest battle of the Rent Wars has ended in Albany, and the kindest word that I could find to describe it from the advocates of stronger rent laws is “disappointing.” So, while New York State celebrates the passage of…

  • Want to Help Homeowners? Replace the Mansion Subsidy

    I don’t think for a second that The New York Times is in bed with the real estate industry. It has done some excellent reporting on the causes of the mortgage crisis and Wall Street’s risky and misguided practices that…