The project will investigate the housing and economic development policy choices made by city public policy makers in the United States. The goal of this research is to explain the variation in housing policies among American cities. The project will (1) determine the effect of inter-city competition on the initiation and support for affordable housing policy and programs, (2) identify political factors influence housing policy decisions, and (3) evaluate the tradeoff between affordable housing and economic development. A stratified sample of cities with populations of 25,000 or more will be the focus of a mail survey of principal policy makers including the city mayor. Four cities will be chosen as case studies based on the quantitative analyses of the survey responses. The results of this study will provide a baseline for a longitudinal analysis of city housing policy in 2005. This project falls under the domain of the Human Capital Initiative.
