CHA reveals next phase of massive public housing redevelopment

Thousands of CHA families rent in the private market with subsidized housing vouchers. A recent Urban Institute report praised the inroads CHA has made with resident services but said children have still suffered. New CHA strategies include improved early childhood education, connecting teens to extra-curricular activities and new youth programs for up to 5,000 kids.

One of the problems with the existing voucher program is that many poor families live in distressed neighborhoods such as Englewood or Austin where there’s high crime and few amenities. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development doesn’t provide enough money for people to live in less segregated, more affluent areas.

To counter that, Woodyard says CHA will acquire and rehabilitate homes and apartments in a variety of neighborhoods.

“One of the things we’re really trying to achieve is to integrate affordable housing into the larger community that is Chicago,” Woodyard said. “It means not just sticking to the South Side. The South Side and the West Side have a fair amount of affordable housing. We’re going to do everything we can to make sure families have opportunities in neighborhoods that give them opportunities.

“One thing we have to understand is our families are used to support systems and familiarity. So some of them may prefer to live on the South Side.” But Woodyard said CHA will give them incentives.

Other highlights from the new plan include an adult literacy pilot program and a recalibrated federal jobs program.

Resident activist Carol Steele runs the Coalition to Protect Public Housing out of Cabrini-Green. She said she’s still concerned about poor residents who lived in CHA back when the plan started in 1999.

“There’s not even enough housing for the people that have the right to return. That’s what I’m looking forward to hearing about,” Steele said. “When are we going to complete these 25,000 replacement units for the residents that are out there waiting to return to their communities?”

Article Appeared @http://www.wbez.org/cha-reveals-next-phase-massive-public-housing-redevelopment-106757

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