Press Releases
Released on July 16, 2007
RECOVERY CORPS RELEASES URBAN INSTITUTE REPORT ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Meeting set for July 17 to discuss housing issues and outcomes
NEW ORLEANS, La. - The Louisiana Family Recovery Corps released today a study it commissioned on affordable housing in New Orleans and called a meeting of housing advocates, providers and business owners to discuss solutions to the housing crisis.
The report, Affordable Rental Housing in Healthy Communities: Rebuilding after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, was launched by the Recovery Corps in March 2007 and conducted by the Urban Institute to research programs and practices that would expand the availability of affordable rental housing along the Gulf Coast. Of the 200,000 homes and apartments destroyed in 2005 by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, 56 percent were rental units.
"Our study with the Urban Institute provides insight and solutions to the housing crisis in New Orleans," said Raymond A. Jetson, chief executive officer of the Recovery Corps. "We are gathering together with housing partners; recovery organizations; and local, state and federal officials; so that we can begin to address the lack of affordable housing and help Louisiana citizens return home."
"Working on this study with the Recovery Corps allowed us to identify challenges specific to storm-affected Louisiana families trying to find affordable housing," said Margery Austin Turner, director of the Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center at the Urban Institute. "The solutions suggested in the report not only help families with their immediate needs, but also offer ways to improve future housing options for low and moderate income families."
To fully address the housing crisis, the study highlights five goals that must be accomplished, which include:
- bringing damaged rental properties back into active use,
- helping low-income households gain access to rental housing that remains,
- building new affordable rental housing in opportunity-rich communities,
- increasing the availability of suitable rental housing for elderly and families with special needs, and
- empowering low-income households that have rebuilt their social networks and community supports.
The Recovery Corps is convening a meeting of housing stakeholders, providers and officials to set priorities on an agenda to address the lack of affordable rental housing in the greater New Orleans area. Topics of discussion will cover strategies to help put damaged rental property back into use; ways to overcome barriers in the development of affordable housing; and how to help families find and afford available rental housing. Representatives from the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center, the Housing Authority of New Orleans, Orleans Metro Housing, Policy Link and the Urban Institute will be attending to share their experiences and concerns on housing in post-Katrina New Orleans.
The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 17, 2007, at the Fischer Senior Village in New Orleans, La., from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. For more information, please contact Donna Lewis, Recovery Corps housing coordinator, at 225/381-3915. To download the complete report, visit www.recoverycorps.org/reports.php.
About the Recovery Corps
Disasters impact people in many unseen ways. Once communities and economies have been torn apart, it can be difficult to find work, shelter, schooling and healthcare-often jeopardizing the well-being of individuals and families. In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita claimed 1,464 lives, originally displaced more than 680,000 residents and destroyed more than 200,000 homes in South Louisiana. Through the coordination of the efforts of human recovery service organizations and creation of fill-the-gap programs, the Louisiana Family Recovery Corps, a private nonprofit organization, provides access to the resources disaster-affected families and individuals need to rebuild their lives. Since service delivery began in January 2006, the Recovery Corps has impacted more than 25,000 Louisiana households. Together, with its partners, the Recovery Corps is driving human recovery. To learn more, visit www.recoverycorps.org.
About the Urban Institute
To promote sound social policy and public debate on national priorities, the Urban Institute gathers and analyzes data, conducts policy research, evaluates programs and services, and educates Americans on critical issues and trends. In the mid-1960s, President Johnson saw the need for independent nonpartisan analysis of the problems facing America's cities and their residents. The President created a blue-ribbon commission of civic leaders who recommended chartering a center to do that work. In 1968, the Urban Institute became that center. Today, we analyze policies, evaluate programs, and inform community development to improve social, civic, and economic well-being. We work in all 50 states and abroad in over 28 countries, and we share our research findings with policymakers, program administrators, business, academics, and the public online and through reports and scholarly books.
