Voucher recipients live in slightly better neighborhoods than the average poor household, but they still live in economically and racially segregated neighborhoods with poor-performing schools.

The Housing Choice voucher program was created to give low-income households the opportunity to move out of public housing—where the effects of the cycle of poverty are severe—and into federally subsidized rental units. The program's success depends on both the willingness of landlords in better neighborhoods to offer voucher-subsidized units and for voucher recipients to relocate to better neighborhoods.
However, concentrated poverty and segregation persist. As Elizabeth Kneebone and Natalie Holmes write, voucher recipients' "housing choices remain limited to racially segregated low-income neighborhoods that may not be much different than where they started...Delivering on the potential of the voucher program to improve access to opportunity means grappling with the barriers to mobility that restrict its use."
Kneebone and Holmes compare the conditions of voucher holders with poor families living in rental housing and public housing. They find that across the country, voucher holders live in less concentrated poverty than public housing residents and low-income renters, but they still live in majority-minority neighborhoods where the average poverty rate is between 19 and 29 percent. They cite a Macarthur Foundation study, which finds that voucher holders live near lower-performing schools than poor families overall, but higher-performing schools than public housing residents.
FULL STORY: Promise and pitfalls of housing choice vouchers vary across the nation

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie