Richard Florida argues that policies in cities around the world are making it harder on those most in need of housing.
When people live in slums, the way to improve their lives is to empower the people living there rather than to attack the slums themselves. Richard Florida argues that when cities try to move or destroy slums and replace them with large-scale projects, they're attacking a symptom of the housing crisis and making the root problems worse. "When residents are displaced or relocated, they are disconnected from critical social and economic networks and livelihood options they themselves created," Florida argues in CityLab.
Slums don't occur at random. When slums develop near cities, it's because the residents know they’ll have access to the economies and infrastructure resources they need.
Florida argues there are policies to help the people directly: "One way to do this is to convert underutilized urban land for affordable housing and economic development, with realistic standards for development." Another is to build infrastructure for the people who live in slums.
"The city of Medellin in Colombia famously did this by using escalators and gondolas to connect steep hillside slums to centers of jobs and economic activity," Florida writes.
FULL STORY: How Cities Are Making the Global Housing Crisis Worse
Spain Moves to Ban 66,000 Airbnbs
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Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.
Louisville Launches ‘Anti-Displacement Tool’
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Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
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This City Will Pay You to Meet Your Neighbors
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Commentary: Our Silence Will Not Protect Us
Keeping our heads down and our language inoffensive is not the right response to the times we’re in. Solidarity and courage is.
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.
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City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
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Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
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