Following termination in 1973 of federal programs aimed at large- scale urban housing construction, local governments have assumed greater responsibility for policy development and implementation to meet neighborhood housing needs. Different jurisdictions have responded in different ways, but many have sought to target investments in areas where they hoped that public assistance would spur private redevelopment efforts, thereby leading to neighborhood revitalization. The selection of sites where public investments are made are crucial decisions in the implementation of policies like these. Despite considerable monitoring, relatively little scientific attention has focused on the impacts of these investments on the neighborhood quality and on the demographic composition of neighborhood residents. This project, which is supported by a Research-Planning Grant for Women Scientists and Engineers, will refine conceptual frameworks for exploration of these and related questions, and it will provide an opportunity for identification and preliminary analyses of data with which to address these issues. Preliminary work will focus on one or more cities in New York state. Among data sources to be explored at the Census of Population and Housing, data from various public agencies documenting public services and publicly assisted housing, and other geographic information available from the New York State Data Center. This project will provide new insights into the general knowledge of the ways that public housing investments and policies, and it will establish a sound base for future empirical analyses of the impacts of public housing decisions on neighborhood dynamics. In addition, the project will provide a superb opportunity for a young female scholar with an excellent background to further improve her basic research skills.
