What is Giving Compass?
We connect donors to learning resources and ways to support community-led solutions. Learn more about us.
Giving Compass' Take:
• The Urban Institute analyzes how housing code enforcement can reinforce racial and income inequality, and offers proactive solutions.
• How can communities find a balance between public health and reducing inequality? How can donors and philanthropists contribute to the implementation of these strategies?
• Read more about urban blight and public health.
Two days ago, Vice published a story about Tamara Adrine-Davis, a resident of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, who is facing jail time because of housing code violations.
Housing codes can help cities ensure that homes are safe and support residents’ health. But disparities exist in how cities choose legal remedies to housing code violations and what course of action to take against owners.
As we advocated for in Memphis, local code enforcement agencies must shift from their current reactive approaches to a more proactive, data-driven model.
Strategies to improve housing code enforcement
- Prioritize internal housing issues: In our report, we urge Memphis officials to focus more time and effort on serious internal and structural issues and conduct proactive inspections of large multifamily complexes with a lot of violations (the facilities run by negligent landlords), as these cases pose more serious risks to public health and safety.
- Find flexible solutions for low-income homeowners and provide more resources to pay for repairs: In nearby Cleveland, the housing court often diverts low-income homeowners to work with its team of housing court specialists in tailoring court compliance plans that match the owners’ and properties’ unique circumstances.
- Focus on race and equity: Code agencies must ensure that the impacts and outcomes of their programs, policies, and interventions do not disproportionately impact vulnerable communities, families, and individuals.
Read the full article about how housing codes should protect public health and not penalize low-income homeowners by Christina Plerhoples Stacy, Joseph Schilling at Urban Institute.