Government

The Future of America's Public Housing Stock: Demolition by Neglect

In D.C., federal funding to renovate or maintain existing affordable housing units has been cut virtually in half. 
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If someone ever wanted to eliminate public housing from the United States, now would be the time to do it, says Adrianne Todman, the executive director of the District of Columbia Housing Authority.

It’s not just that the federal funding typically allocated to local housing agencies has been steadily declining since 2000 (though it has). And it’s not just that the majority of the nation's public housing stock has reached a certain age, requiring repairs that go well beyond superficial sprucing (though that's true, too). What's threatening the very future of urban public housing in the U.S. is the combination of those two trends with higher-than-ever demand for affordable housing. It's all coalescing into "a perfect storm" of problems, according to Todman.