Creating mixed-income communities has become one popular policy
response to the social isolation and economic and public sector disinvestment that characterize
high-poverty neighborhoods in most urban areas. The objective is to attract residents with higher
incomes while maintaining affordable and public housing for lower income residents. It is hoped
that, through this strategy, housing developments and perhaps entire neighborhoods can be created
that provide strong networks to employment and other resources beyond the neighborhood, more
effective demand for high quality amenities and public services, and positive role models for
youth.
Mixed-Income Development in Chicago: Case
Studies
Description:
We know very little about the impact on residents of living in a
mixed-income development, or of how they differ from public housing residents living in other
housing circumstances. This research projects focuses on investigating the strategies and
effectiveness of strategies used to build community in mixed-income developments, residents'
experiences in a mixed income development, and the impact of mixed-income developments on
residents' lives.
Research Grants:
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
Annie E. Casey Foundation
Ford Foundation/Heartland Alliance
Research Briefs:
Building Community in Mixed-Income Developments
Living in a Mixed-Income Development: Resident Perceptions of
Benefits and Disadvantages
The Nature of Social Interaction in Mixed-Income
Developments
Whose Space? Whose Rules? Social Challenges in Mixed-Income Developments
Jazz on the Boulevard Case Study
Description:
This research project is a long-term case study of Jazz on the
Boulevard, one of the first planned mixed-income developments being created as part of the CHA 's
1999 Plan for Transformation. In-depth, qualitative interviews of residents, service providers and
developers, and a comparison group of individuals describe what motivated residents to choose to
live in a mixed-income development, their perception of the neighborhood 's role in their lives,
how the development effects social capital, networks, and social organizations, and what roles
various members of the community play.
Research Grants:
Rockefeller Foundation
Case Western Research University
Research Highlights:
Highlight 1: Movers
versus non-movers: Who are they?
Highlight 2: The
resident population at Jazz
Highlight 3:
Understanding the choice to live at Jazz
Highlight 4:
Resident perspectives on mixed-income development
Highlight 5: Early
resident experiences: General satisfaction
Highlight 6: Early
social relations at Jazz
Joseph, Mark. Early Resident Experiences at a New
Mixed-Income Development in Chicago. Journal of Urban Affairs. 30:3, 229-257.
Find it here
Mixed-Income Development in Chicago:
Developer and Service Provider Perspectives
Description:
This research project is an investigation into possibilities and
challenges faced by development teams in transforming public housing into mixed-income development
communities.
Research Grants:
Rockefeller Foundation
Joseph, Mark L. Forthcoming. Creating Mixed-Income
Developments in Chicago: Developer and Service Provider Perspectives. Housing Policy Debate.
Available here
**
Faith-Based Mentoring Demonstration
Evaluation
Description:
The Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development selected
the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) as one of the three sites nationally to implement a mentoring
demonstration program. The goal of this program is to test a means of providing additional support
for public housing residents who have been relocated as part of a HOPE VI redevelopment by
partnering residents with mentors who are recruited through faith-based and community-based
organizations. This study seeks to determine the effectiveness of the program, explore experiences
of participants, and the perspectives of mentors and staff members of participating
institutions.
Research grants:
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development/Chicago Housing
Authority
** Author Posting. (c) Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 2010.
This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University for personal use, not for redistribution.
The definitive version was published in Housing Policy Debate, Volume 20 Issue 1, January
2010.
Find
it here
