Robert Goldman But the suburbs, and even more the exurbs, are places where there is little or no affordable housing, little or no public transit, and (to a somewhat lesser extent) few resources to support people with severe chronic illnesses (both physical and psychological). Poor people simply can't live in the suburbs (with rare exceptions)! Without cars it's impossible to get around (a large proportion of recent developments don't even include sidewalks, much less bus access).
Nick Frank: I think this refers to the fact that most suburban governments/constituents won't allow social services and affordable housing to be located in their cities through the use of zoning and other tools. Since displacement simply doesn't mean the problems go away, the services/affordable housing will be located in whatever cities will allow them which traditionally have been in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Consequently the people who need those services will live disproportionately in the city. The fact is that there are only a handful of publicly funded drug treatment centers in the metro region, or half-way houses (like the one for registered sex offenders a few blocks from my home) and they are almost all in the central cities. Consequently that is where the people who use the services will be. Realistically its not like people who need social services somehow have a strong historical preference for urban areas. They have essentially been zoned out of living in most suburbs. So in that sense, the suburbs have transferred the problems. Rick Mons: Nick, I'm afraid you're flat out wrong about this. For example, within a two mile radius of Shoreview's "city center" are at least three (or more) residences for developmentally delayed, two senior housing complexes, a nursing home for Alzheimer patients, a shelter for battered women, an alternative school, the Union Gospel Mission facility, etc. All of these are permitted under our zoning laws. ________________________ As a planner for 10 years in a social services planning organization that studied changing demographics and coordinated social services needs in first and second ring suburban communities, I certainly experienced suburban intransigence in developing affordable housing and transit opportunities, which (I agree) in effect have limited the diversity of its demographic makeup and social services community. As such, Minneapolis has a disproportionate share of low-income households and corresponding social service supports relative to the suburbs. It also stands to reason that this is true because Minneapolis - as a core city - is the oldest and most established city and, thus, its housing, transportation and social services infrastructure is more developed compared to that of suburbs. Suburbs have some catching up to do in providing more affordable housing and transit opportunities. Stronger laws and greater incentives and finances are required to make this happen. The current Livable Communities Act doesn't have enough teeth to ensure the needed growth in affordable housing. With this said, suburbs are far from homogeneous islands of people without social service needs and lacking in social services. Demographics are never stagnant and suburban demographics have diversified greatly, especially over the past decade and a half (due to choice and [market rate and subsidized] affordable housing opportunities), and the service community has responded. There has been tremendous energy and investment put into developing the social services infrastructure in suburban communities and, in more established suburbs, the full range of services is available - immigrant services, food banks, chemical dependency services, health services, residential or day treatment services (of all kinds), senior services, teenage support services, and affordable housing related services, to name a few. Hennepin County anticipated the demographic trend toward the suburbs and created human services planning councils as long ago as the 1970s in partnership with suburban communities to study growing human service needs and develop/coordinate needed services. (Hennepin county and state planning departments have good studies on the geographic distribution of populations and various services.) (It would be interesting to study the geographic distribution of investment in social services to see where the fastest growth is occurring.) The distribution of low-income households throughout the suburbs isn't even, but instead is primarily concentrated in pockets, where (market rate and subsidized) affordable housing and transit amenities exist - primarily in first-ring suburbs and some second-ring suburbs such as Bloomington and Brooklyn Park. In outer-ring suburbs, low-income households are typically concentrated in subsidized apartment units, but that too has been changing with the trend toward mixed rather than concentrated affordable housing. Services in suburbs are not necessarily as concentrated as the populations they serve. They tend to be located in or near city halls or commercial areas with available space. A problem in the suburbs is access to services due to lack of transit and conveniently located services. While Minneapolis as a whole may be home to a disproportionate share of the west metro's low-income households and corresponding services, Minneapolis doesn't have bragging rights on inclusivity: There is a concentration of low-income household and social services within Minneapolis as well, in those areas with a greater share of affordable housing and access to transit services. With this concentration is a corresponding burden on those neighborhoods to address issues relating to poverty. Affordable housing and group homes are contested by well-off neighborhoods in Minneapolis, just as they are in suburbs. Such services are more conspicuous in less diverse neighborhoods. Also, let's remind ourselves that people with economic means also have social service needs and they too rely on public and nonprofit services, but they are also able to purchase services in the for-profit sector more readily than those from low-income households. The bulk of funding for most social services comes from non municipal governmental sources - fed, state and county (the amount of governmental funding and the source varies depending on the type of service). What government doesn't fund, private foundations and individuals do. Very little municipal money (in Minneapolis or suburbs) is used to support social services, with the exception of city operated public health services (as in Minneapolis and Bloomington) and some senior recreational services (some suburbs operate their own senior centers). Neither do school districts typically fund privately operated social services. Additionally, cities do not have control over WHERE the county, state or feds decide to fund social services. The most significant trend in human service needs in the coming decades will be services for aging populations - transportation, assisted living, and accessible support services. While Minneapolis will be challenged to meets these needs, it has an advantage that most suburbs don't have - a more balanced population with regard to age. Suburbs grew up quickly following WWII (now our first-ring suburbs) or since the 90s (now our second and beyond suburbs) and are aging (or will age) quickly as well. Minneapolis also benefits from a solid transit infrastructure to support the elderly. Most suburbs will be significantly challenged by this need due to the complete car-depended orientation of suburban development, and substantial investment in transportation services will be needed to provide mobility to and access for seniors. _________________________________________________________________ Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today - it's FREE! hthttp://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/ REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls REMINDERS: 1. 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