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From Public Housing to Public-Private Housing

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  • Lawrence J. Vale
  • Yonah Freemark

Abstract

Problem, research strategy, and findings: American public housing since 1937 is often viewed as a single failed experiment of architecture, management, and policy. This view masks a much more highly differentiated experience for residents and housing authorities, rooted in a long-term moral and ideological struggle over the place of the poorest residents in American cities. This article reframes public housing history as a succession of informal social experiments: initial public efforts to clear out slum-dwellers and instead accommodate barely poor working-class tenants or the worthy elderly; a 30-year interlude, where public housing authorities consolidated the poorest into welfare housing while gradually shifting responsibility for low-income housing to private landlords, private developers, and private investors; and a series of partnerships since 1990 that reserve more of this public-private housing for a less-poor constituency. Empirically, this article provides an unprecedented graphic glimpse into the ways that the overall mode-share of public housing has shifted and diversified. Ultimately, this article reveals that the reduced role of the public sector has curtailed the growth of deeply subsidized housing provision to the lowest-income Americans. Takeaway for practice: As various initiatives continue to redevelop conventional public housing, this article asks practitioners to consider larger historical and policy questions about which of America's poorest citizens should be served, and to rethink the naming and definitional boundaries of what constitutes public housing. Research support: Research assistant support provided by the authors' university.

Suggested Citation

  • Lawrence J. Vale & Yonah Freemark, 2012. "From Public Housing to Public-Private Housing," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 78(4), pages 379-402, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:rjpaxx:v:78:y:2012:i:4:p:379-402
    DOI: 10.1080/01944363.2012.737985
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Edgar O. Olsen, 2003. "Housing Programs for Low-Income Households," NBER Chapters, in: Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States, pages 365-442, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Blanco, Hector, 2023. "Pecuniary effects of public housing demolitions: Evidence from Chicago," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    2. Jiangang Shi & Kaifeng Duan & Shiping Wen & Rui Zhang, 2019. "Investment Valuation Model of Public Rental Housing PPP Project for Private Sector: A Real Option Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-18, March.
    3. Blanco, Hector & Neri, Lorenzo, 2023. "Knocking It Down and Mixing It Up: The Impact of Public Housing Regenerations," IZA Discussion Papers 15855, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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