HUD Secretary Castro Stops in Atlanta for Prosperity Playbook Tour

HUD Secretary Julián Castro and City of Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

Prosperity Playbook Convening Atlanta Regional Commission Chambers.

HUD Secretary Julián Castro visited Atlanta recently as part of the ongoing five city tour and promotion of the Prosperity Playbook. Castro is leading the effort to create a "Prosperity Playbook" of best practices that will help sustain the economic mobility and viability of cities well into the future. The other cities on the tour were Kansas City, Minneapolis, Denver and San Francisco.

The meeting with government, community, business and civic leaders at the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), was part of a larger discussion on economic mobility; expanding housing access and affordability; and improving educational opportunities and job creation in the Atlanta Region. The event was hosted by the ARC and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

"We see this happening, not just in big cities but in smaller towns and places most people don't think of as being unaffordable," Secretary Castro said. "The idea behind the Prosperity Playbook is: how can we create greater housing opportunities throughout the region and make sure we do our best to lift up those vulnerable neighborhoods?"

"When we think about equity, we think about housing, we think about infrastructure, we think about connectivity," Reed said. "In the past, all of those different functions moved independently."

Secretary Castro agreed that these issues were indeed inter-related and related that good affordable housing can help all facets of life for people living in the margins.

The "Prosperity Playbook" will not be a federal mandate or plan. It will be a collection of the best ideas from a cross section of local leaders who are committed to working regionally to solve some of the most difficult issues facing communities across the country.

A recent Harvard study (http://economics.harvard.edu/news/new-research-mobility-studies-profs-chetty-hendren-and-katz) showed that a low-income boy growing up in Baltimore will earn roughly 25 percent less than a similar child growing up in higher-opportunity community. One of the most striking findings was the 18-year gap in life expectancy in Missouri between the Clayton zip code of 63105 (85 years) and the Jeff-Vander-Lou neighborhood zip code of 63106 in North St. Louis (67 years). Findings from the study support a balanced approach of empowering economic mobility while also reinvesting in and developing access to opportunity in neighborhoods.

Following the engagement tour, each contributing community will create a regional blueprint outlining best practices and ideas to tackle the specific challenges facing their local communities in creating more inclusive communities. In the fall, HUD will use the regional blueprints to inform the "Prosperity Playbook" toolkit, which will be made available online. This will be a new online resource for state and local leaders and other stakeholders to use for community planning and development.

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