At an August 8, 2002 meeting, stakeholders in the CHA's Plan for Transformation learned about efforts to maximize the options available to CHA residents during the relocation process, especially progress on new initiatives to improve Housing Choice Voucher Program placement rates.
Public housing is going through a major transformation all across the country. Chicago’s Plan for Transformation is perhaps the most ambitious — not only due to the amount of housing being demolished and redeveloped, but also because of the systemic changes in property management and service delivery that will be necessary for the plan to succeed.
For the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), relocation has proven to be a monumental task, given that the Plan calls for all 25,000 CHA lease-holders and their families to move at least once over the course of redevelopment to another public housing unit, or temporary or permanent housing in the private rental market. Overseeing this massive effort is Meghan Harte, managing director of Resident Services for the CHA.
At an Aug. 8, 2002 meeting of stakeholders in the CHA's Plan for Transformation, Harte described the CHA's efforts to promote opportunity moves and reduce Chicago's historic segregation trends. She also explained the Housing Choice Voucher program (formerly the Section 8 program). Click here to download her presentation. For a broad overview of the relocation process, see MPC Fact Sheet #3: Public Housing in the Public Interest: Examining the Chicago Housing Authority’s Relocation Efforts.
Susan Popkin, a panelist at the meeting and senior research associate in the Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center of the Urban Institute, a national policy and advocacy organization, presented findings from a study she conducted on the CHA’s relocation process. The CHA Relocation Counseling Assessment Interim Report examined the experiences of 190 CHA residents who moved during spring and fall of 2001, and spring through summer of 2002. (For a copy of this report, visit the Urban Institute Web site. Click here to download Ms. Popkin's presentation at the Aug. 8 meeting.)
This study asks questions familiar to stakeholders about delivering services effectively to public housing residents. What are the best models? What are the best ways to address specific barriers public housing residents face in relocation? What else is the CHA doing to maximize the housing choices available to public housing residents who are moving, as well as other voucher holders?
William Riley, executive director of CHAC, presented highlights of the CHA Mobility Counseling Program, a voluntary program that encourages voucher holders to make moves to “opportunity neighborhoods.” These are areas defined by HUD as having a poverty rate of 23.49 percent or lower. CHAC is a private entity, contracted by the CHA to administer their Housing Choice Voucher Program, and has helped develop specific programs for families interested in making opportunity moves. This program is open to any family enrolled in the voucher program, not just CHA residents. Click here to download Riley's presentation.
The Gautreaux II Mobility Program is another relocation counseling program specifically encouraging CHA families to move to opportunity areas. Mary Davis, senior vice president of the Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities, emphasized the need to recruit additional landlords to accept housing choice vouchers, noting that there were more than 600 families who had signed up to participate in their program to receive counseling and placement services.
In addition to the counseling programs mentioned above, the CHA added four new relocation counseling agencies this summer. (For a complete list of counseling agencies, click here and see slide 8.) These new agencies will promote opportunity moves as well. As stipulated in the CHA's new relocation counseling contracts, counselors are required to show prospective tenants at least one apartment in a low poverty area.
A number of regional initiatives to increase the number of units available for Housing Choice Voucher holders are also underway. Robin Snyderman, housing director for the MPC, described regional partnerships to promote development of more diverse types of housing. MetroLinks for Jobs and Housing, the Regional Housing Initiative and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Housing Task Force are all programs that build on the capacity of our region to address the housing challenges faced by voucher holders. (Click here to download Snyderman's presentation Public Housing in the Public Interest: Making Regional Connections.)
The combination of these new programs and policy changes signal the CHA's committment to increasing service delivery and counseling capacity for the relocation effort, and to assisting voucher holders at moving into the rental market.
Since 1999, the CHA has expanded their strategy, implementing a Good Neighbor Counseling Program, Service Connectors, Housing Choice Voucher clinics, a Relocation Management and Tracking System and most significantly, creating a new relocation department. These efforts were combined to enhance coordination among all entities involved in relocation, thus creating a more seamless process for residents.
Stakeholders must continue to work with the CHA to continue improving services to residents before, during and after their moves. The CHA has made meaningful progress in improving moving conditions for CHA residents, but much work remains. MPC hopes to see better coordination among service providers and better overall communication with residents about the redevelopment and relocation processes.
For more information on the Plan for Transformation, browse through our Public Housing for the Public Interest Fact Sheets or visit the Chicago Housing Authority's Web site.