Demographic Maps, Fair Housing & the Future

A new New York City report on furthering fair housing in New York aims, in the words of the press release, "to break down barriers to opportunity and build more integrated, equitable neighborhoods."  Key goals of the plan include:

• Fight housing discrimination by pursuing increased resources and protections.
• Promote development that opens up more communities to low-income families.
• Preserve low-cost housing and prevent displacement of long-standing residents through stronger tenant protections and new affordable housing investments.
• Empower families receiving rental assistance and expand use of these benefits in amenity-rich neighborhoods.
• Create better and more integrated living options for people with disabilities.
• Align investments to address segregation, discrimination, and concentrated poverty. 

​Given that term-limited Mayor Bill de Blasio will be out of office in a year, expect these issues to be part of the 2021 mayoral campaign.

Below, I've highlighted a few graphics from the plans especially relevant to Brooklyn, with signs of gentrification; a shift in the black/white population in Central Brooklyn; a notable reliance on essential workers who commute long distances (such as from southern and eastern Brooklyn); a notable absence of public housing in southwest Brooklyn; a concentration of new construction in hot areas like Williamsburg and Downtown Brooklyn.