Syosset, NY – November 27, 2023 – Laura Harding, President of ERASE Racism, announced today that ERASE Racism has created, and is making available for free, an interactive mapping tool to advance affordable and inclusive housing in New York State. ERASE Racism’s Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool is designed to be used by advocates, developers, and the general public. It covers the entire state of New York, which is experiencing an affordable housing crisis.
According to the NYU Furman Center, a majority of renters across New York are paying more for rent than they can afford. The share of renter households that are severely rent-burdened has had a negative impact on the workforce, and has led to racial segregation and inequities in education and housing. Similarly, restrictions on the housing supply have increased the housing costs burden for homeowners across New York State and have contributed to the homeownership racial wealth gap. Essentially, affordable housing and homeownership play an important role in helping to solve some of the most pressing issues of our time.
ERASE Racism’s Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool (AIHT) is an easy-to-use interactive platform that provides foundational information for people seeking to advocate for and develop affordable and inclusive housing. It utilizes 30 fair housing measures, including the financial stability of the area, local health outcomes, and housing quality to identify placement for new affordable housing. As a result, users of AIHT can identify high-opportunity areas (prime locations for affordable housing), retrieve information on existing subsidized and multi-family housing, measure racial segregation, and identify low-opportunity areas that should receive more infrastructural investments. The platform also includes a second opportunity index that assesses the quality of the local school district.
AIHT offers a new lens to the affordable housing landscape. If used properly, it can be the first step in helping to ensure that new affordable housing is developed in all areas rather than being concentrated in particular locations, such as low-income areas, as has historically been the case. AIHT can have a positive impact on workforce development and housing, address housing concerns for senior citizens and other populations, and improve educational outcomes. Everyone benefits when affordable housing is broadly available.
“ERASE Racism’s Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool is an essential new device for those interested in increasing affordable and inclusive housing in New York State,” says ERASE Racism President Laura Harding. “It provides a level of analysis that has not been previously available and that is crucial to identifying the best places for such new housing.”
Kate Slevin, Executive Vice President of the Regional Plan Association (RPA), states, “ERASE Racism's new Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool provides a valuable asset for communities across the state that highlights inequities and offers vital information about education, housing, and neighborhood opportunity.”
Philip Tegeler, President and Executive Director of the Poverty & Race Research Action Council (PRRAC), says of ERASE Racism’s Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool: “We have already started to use these maps in our work with local housing mobility programs in New York State.”
ERASE Racism’s Affordable and Inclusive Housing Tool was developed by Olivia Ildefonso, Ph.D., data and analytics consultant to ERASE Racism, in collaboration with Laura Harding, President of ERASE Racism.
To speak with Laura Harding, or to explore the tool’s application to a specific location with Olivia Ildefonso, contact Henry Miller – hmiller@highimpactpartnering.com or 917-921-8034.