Katrina Housing Crisis Still Hampers Gulf Coast Recovery
New Orleans, LA (BlackNews.com) – Three years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita battered the homes of hundreds thousands of Louisianans, too many residents are still unable to afford to rebuild their homes or find an affordable place to rent, according to a new housing report by the national research and advocacy group PolicyLink.
The new report, “A Long Way Home: The State of Housing Recovery in Louisiana 2008,” shows that while some progress has been made during the past year, thousands of residents who want to return home are facing a critical rental housing shortage, inadequate rebuilding grants and a recovery plagued by red tape and ever-changing rules.
“For three years, Louisianans have been working hard to get back home,” said co-author Kalima Rose, the director of the PolicyLink Louisiana Initiative. “But enormous obstacles still stand in the way of a true recovery. Workers can find few places to rent. Homeowners are short on funds to rebuild. A fair, just housing recovery is vital to the overall recovery of the Gulf Coast.”
The report, which can be viewed at www.PolicyLink.org/ThreeYearsLater, analyzes the three major federally funded housing recovery programs – the Road Home (for homeowners) and the small and large rental programs (for renters). Together, these programs allocate nearly $12 billion in federal recovery funds to restore housing in Louisiana.
Some key findings:
- In New Orleans, 4 of every 5 Road Home recipients rebuilding their homes did not get enough money to cover their repairs. Statewide, more than 2 of every 3 face the same predicament.
- Statewide, the average Road Home applicant fell more than $35,000 short of the money they need to rebuild their home. The shortfall hit highly flooded, historically African-American communities particularly hard.
- Nearly 40,000 low-income homeowners received an average of about $27,000 each from an additional Road Home grant program designed to help vulnerable residents.
- Renters still face huge hurdles–only 2 in 5 damaged affordable rental units statewide will be repaired or replaced with recovery assistance. In the New Orleans metro region, it’s an even more dismal rate of 1 in 3.
- The national credit crunch and personal financial vulnerability keeps many mom-and-pop landlords from being able to rebuild through the small rental repair program. Meant to restore more than 10,000 rental homes, the program has completed only 82.
- Nearly 28,000 families nationwide still rely on disaster rental assistance, with 14,000 in the greater New Orleans metro region alone. There will not be nearly enough affordable rental units on the market by the time the assistance runs out in March 2009.
The report — featuring a broad array of statistics, maps and policy recommendations — is available at www.PolicyLink.org/ThreeYearsLater
PolicyLink is a national research and action institute that has been working on the ground advancing equity in Louisiana for nearly three years. With an office in downtown New Orleans, PolicyLink is dedicated to the long-term recovery of the Gulf Coast.
TV ONE Premieres Special One-Hour Interview with Michelle Obama
Silver Spring, MD (BlackNews.com) – Michelle Obama sits down with TV One commentator Roland Martin to discuss a wide range of topics that provide a personal glimpse of the presumptive Democratic Presidential candidate’s spouse, her relationship with her husband and family, and what she thinks about the historic role into which they have stepped on Sunday, August 24 from 8-9 PM ET, when TV One premieres In Conversation…The Michelle Obama Interview.
With Elevation, There’s Tribulation
With Elevation, There’s Tribulation, But You Must Have Expectation That VICTORY Will Come!
by E. Claudette Freeman
August 2007; I will never forget it. That is the month that I finally stepped into the path that God had paved for me. It was a time of realizing that everything else had been preparation. It was also the realization that when God says move out of preparation into practice, we must do that immediately or our victory can be marred by unnecessary tribulation.
God knows my name and He knows yours, too!
God knows my name and He knows yours, too!
by Vanessa Richardson
She was suddenly hit hard. The unexpected impact sent her sprawling to her knees. She could hear the incessant sound of the rain, pelting against her large bedroom window. It was all a strange phenomenon, to her. Dark billowy clouds had gathered, hovering and intimidating. It was an remarkable sight. The howling winds were a frightening thing to hear. The ominous sound caused chills to dance over the lone woman’s slight frame.
Daily Addition
Daily Addition
by Becky DeWitt
The beginning of the book of Acts gives the account of Believers in the process of being transformed into the Body of Christ, transitioning the message of the Gospel with the demonstration of signs, wonders, and miracles. Jesus had ascended back to His heavenly position, releasing the Holy Spirit to move working with Believers to fulfill the Great Commission of ‘Go Ye’. “And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following.” (Mark 16:20). It was these signs, the wonderful work of God that attracted people to the truth of Jesus Christ.
First African American Pilot
AMERICAN AIRLINES CAPTAIN DAVE HARRIS, RET., TO BE HONORED FOR BLAZING THE TRAIL FOR ALL BLACK AIRLINE PILOTS
First Black Pilot Will Be Recognized at OBAP Annual Conference
On Thursday, Aug. 14, American Airlines Captain Dave Harris will be honored as the first African American pilot to fly for a commercial airline at the Organization of Black Airline Pilots 32nd Annual Convention in Miami. Harris, 73, retired from American Airlines in 1994 after more than 30 years of service.
