We know how to solve Philly’s housing crisis. We just need to do it.

7.31.2020 — LISC StoriesCommunity EngagementEquitable Community DevelopmentHousingSCI Eastern North

Op-Ed originially appeared in WHYY's PlanPhilly

The protest encampment on 22nd Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway is a stark reminder of the critical need for comprehensive affordable housing solutions. The entrenched poverty that plagues the city is the result of years of structural racism, including policies such as redlining and racially restrictive deeds and covenants, that has left communities of color economically deprived and disinvested, making this highly diverse city the fourth most segregated in America. Additionally, gentrification, which is rampant across different areas of the city, is pricing low-income Philadelphians — primarily Black, Latinx, and low-income Philadelphians — out of their own neighborhoods.

Although COVID-19 has put a spotlight on housing inequality, our city had serious housing issues long before the pandemic hit. Now is the time for organizations in the public and private sector to help address this crisis and specifically work towards rectifying the wrongs to Black, brown, Latinx, and communities of color.

We know what to do, and we must do more. Essential first steps to increasing the supply of safe and affordable housing must include increased federal, state, and local funding such as:

Flexible funds, such as the Community Development Block Grant and HOME programs, for local governments to address their critical affordable housing needs;
Expanded investment in new affordable rental housing through increased allocation and value of federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and creation of a new state Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, with a set-aside for the preservation of at-risk rental housing;
New flexible rental assistance to reduce homelessness and housing instability;
Capital for community development financial institutions to provide flexible low-cost financing for the development of new affordable housing

Additional solutions include inclusionary zoning, mixed-use development and other policies that allow vulnerable residents to remain in neighborhoods with hot real estate markets; more pathways for homeownership and community ownership for Black and brown residents; and increased capacity building for nonprofit affordable housing developers.

But what our two organizations have accomplished simply isn’t enough. Amid a public health emergency and the resulting rises in unemployment, poverty, and homelessness, Philadelphia must provide more affordable housing opportunities.

We’re proud of what we’ve done to address affordable housing issues in Philadelphia. However, with thousands of families lacking affordable housing, 5,700 people living in homeless shelters or on the streets, and some even taking over vacant buildings, there is far more work to be done.

The crisis demands immediate action with more institutions and organizations stepping up and getting involved—with community engagement at every step of the process.

Nilda Ruiz is the president and chief executive officer of Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha, Inc. (APM) and a national board member of LISC. Andrew Frishkoff is executive director of LISC’s Philadelphia office.