Philadelphia is one of the most important cities in the nation both as a unique focal point of American History and an ongoing center of national and international commerce. Its 1.6 million residents make it the fifth largest city in the country and its commitment to educational and artistic excellence reflect its elevated stature among American cities.
The housing and community development activities described in the Year 21 Consolidated Plan include housing production (the creation of new housing units through vacant structure rehabilitation or new housing construction); housing preservation (the maintenance and upgrading of existing housing stock which is occupied or suitable for occupancy); housing activities such as rental assistance and other activities for homeless persons and persons with special needs; public and social services; employment and training; and community economic development programs and services.
The primary resources available to support these activities include the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), the Home Investment Partnerships (HOME) program and HOPWA program administered by HUD. The City received approximately $98 million under these Federal programs for Fiscal Year 1996 (Year 21). Other funding sources include the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Community Affairs (DCA), the City's Economic Stimulus Program and program income generated by real estate sales and other activities. The total resources, including CDBG, HOME, HOPWA, and other local funds, available for the City in Year 21 are approximately $245 million.
OHCD undertook a planning process that called for citizen participation to
be obtained through public hearings and input to be solicited from relevant
City agencies and other organizations providing housing services. These
organizations were asked to review working drafts of the plan, as well as the Preliminary Year 21 Consolidated Plan, which was released on March 1, 1995, and to
supply relevant programmatic and policy changes. A public hearing was held on
the Preliminary Year 21 Consolidated Plan on March 16, 1995, and all citizen
comments received were considered in developing the Proposed Year 21
Consolidated Plan. Public hearings on the Proposed Year 21 Consolidated Plan
were conducted on May 30, 1995 in City Council. The City Council hearing met
the requirements for public review and comment which are outlined in the Citizen
Participation Plan.The City Council adopted the Proposed Year 21
Consolidated Plan on June 8, 1995. This final version of the Year 21
Consolidated Plan is being submitted to HUD for review and approval.
Philadelphia housing needs in the 1990s have been influenced strongly by broad economic trends that have affected many other cities in the northeastern United States, as well as by unique factors associated with Philadelphia's own environment and history. Unlike some other areas of the United States, Philadelphia does not have a housing shortage; the city has been experiencing population loss for many years, and, in numerical terms, there are more than enough housing units in the city to accommodate current households and any additional population growth which might occur during the next decade. Instead, Philadelphia's housing crisis is based on two related factors: the deteriorated condition of the city's occupied and vacant housing stock and the shortage of housing units priced at sales and rent levels affordable to low- and moderate-income households.
Philadelphia's loss of population over the past three decades created a growing oversupply of housing units relative to population in the city as a whole and in most Philadelphia neighborhoods. One consequence of this oversupply of housing was a steady increase in the number of vacant, boarded-up housing units, many of which were abandoned due to the shortage of buyers and renters which became more of a problem as population shrank. This trend is illustrated in the table below.
Table I: Population and Housing Supply in Philadelphia
| Philadelphia | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | Percent Change 1970-1990 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,948,609 | 1,688,210 | 1,585,577 | -18.6% |
| No. of Housing Units | 673,524 | 685,131 | 674,899 | 0.2% |
| Vacant | 31,245 | 44,624 | 56,050 | 79.4% |
| Vacant (boarded) | N/A | 20,726 | 15,774 | N/A |
As Table I indicates, citywide population dropped 18.6 percent between 1970 and 1990. By 1990, 56,050 (8 percent) of the city's housing units were vacant and for sale or rent and another 15,744 (2 percent) were vacant and boarded up (These counts are based on Census data and do not include unsealed, blighted structures that are "open to the elements;" such units are not considered part of the housing stock).
Since most low- and moderate-income Philadelphia neighborhoods will not experience population growth during the next decade and may experience additional population loss during this period, addressing the oversupply of vacant housing units--both those available for sale or rent as well as boarded-up units--is an important issue for Philadelphia neighborhoods.
The deteriorated condition of a substantial portion of the available housing stock, both rental and owner occupied, also creates housing problems for many low- and moderate- income families in the city. More than half of the housing in Philadelphia was built before 1940, and a high proportion of units, especially of those occupied by lower-income families, antedate World War 1.
The lack of regular maintenance, especially roof maintenance, accelerates
property deterioration and increases the cost of compliance with City Housing
Code. Many housing units in properties occupied by the poorest Philadelphia
households are only marginally habitable. Although Philadelphia has high rates
of home ownership and average rents significantly below many cities of
comparable size, blight, abandonment, and substandard conditions are pervasive
throughout the housing stock occupied by lower-income households.
Housing Affordability: Declining Incomes and Economic Opportunity [From Philadelphia 2000: Working Together for the Future, City of Philadelphia, 1994]
Like most urban centers, Philadelphia has faced tremendous challenges in the latter half of this century. Advances in transportation, communications and technology, coupled with the decline of the manufacturing and industrial economy, served to direct growth away from cities. Over the past 25 years, Philadelphia has lost more than a quarter million jobs, and the number of jobs in the City has declined each and every year since 1988.
The loss of jobs has been spread among almost all of the City's industries, but has been particularly severe in manufacturing, which historically provided a supply of low-skill, high- paying jobs. In 1982, manufacturing employment accounted for 15 percent of the City's employment, but by 1992 manufacturing employment had dropped to 9.9 percent. Service employment (a mix of high-paying, high-skill jobs) and many more low-paying, low-skill jobs increased from 29.9 percent of City jobs in 1982 to 37.8 percent in 1992. In 1993, the City experienced its best job performance since 1988, and still lost 1.2 percent of its job base.
The change from a centralized manufacturing economy to a regional service economy has had profound consequences for Philadelphia's job base. While the city experienced a short- lived recovery in the mid- to late 1980's, its unemployment rate has generally been on the rise since 1970 and has consistently been higher in the city than in the region as a whole. In the past four years, unemployment has increased in each sector of the economy: construction, manufacturing, trade, finance-insurance-real estate, transportation and public utilities, services, and government. In five of these seven sectors, it has more than doubled. Since 1970, unemployment has consistently been much higher among African Americans than among whites.
The realignment to a service economy has devastated older Philadelphia neighborhoods which in more prosperous times were closely linked to local manufacturing. The impoverishment of Philadelphia's population has been ruinous to its old housing stock. Fewer families are able to repair and maintain their property, exacerbating the forces of structural deterioration and abandonment discussed above.
In summary, Philadelphia's housing problems are but one of the more visible manifestations of a long-term regional economic shift. Philadelphia has a population that has experienced a significant income polarization and many of the skills required by the new service economy have not been transferred to the inner city, particularly affecting the Latino and African-American populations. Though desperately needed, housing policies and programs alone cannot solve these problems. Comprehensive economic and human-resource development are essential. As more Philadelphians find secure employment and earn wages above the poverty level, more of them will be assured of sound, affordable housing.
Economically dependent groups now represent a growing share of Philadelphia's population. Single-parent households with related children, the family type most likely to be dependent on public assistance as its primary source of income, increased from 20.2 percent of all family households in 1980 to 23.4 percent in 1990. The corresponding ratios for female-headed, single-parent households were 18 percent in 1980 and 20 percent in 1990. Female-headed, single-parent households are most common among minority groups: 35.2 percent of all African American family households, 33.8 percent of all Latino households, and 28 percent of all Native American households fall into this category.
The combined effects of these economic, demographic and social trends have produced a growing incidence of poverty in Philadelphia. According to Census data, in 1969 15.2 percent of the City's population was living below the poverty threshold; in 1979, the number of City residents living in poverty had climbed to 16.6 percent-, by 1989, the poverty rate had increased by a full third to 20.3 percent.
The growth in poverty is also evident from data on the numbers of residents receiving public assistance. As of June, 1993, approximately 550,000 individuals received some form of public assistance, such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Food Stamps, Medicaid or energy assistance. This number represents over one-third of Philadelphia's total population Also, the number of individuals receiving either AFDC or General Assistance (GA) has increased steadily since the 1980's.
As poverty has increased, more Philadelphians are finding themselves in need of housing assistance. Subsequently, the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) waiting lists for subsidized housing have grown dramatically. For example, as of April 1995 there were 16,074 families on the waiting list for Section 8 subsidies; this number does not reflect the full extent of demand for housing assistance. The general public knowledge that those on the list may wait two years to be placed in a public housing unit (and as long as three years to be placed in a Section 8 unit) has discouraged applications from many families in immediate need of housing. In contrast to the growing need for subsidized housing in Philadelphia, the number of available units has been declining over time. Several thousand units are unavailable because they are not in rentable condition. PHA currently has 4,833 vacant residential units, of which 2,800 have been vacated in the course of current modernization efforts.
The distribution of household income in Philadelphia is such that close to 57 percent of all households may be categorized as at or below moderate-income and therefore eligible for some form of federal, state or local assistance (see table 2 below). Over one-third of all households in the city are in the lowest income stratum, the Extremely Low- and Low-Income categories; among those households eligible to receive some form of government assistance, over 65 percent are in this income stratum. These data point to a polarization of households between the lowest income stratum and upper/middle-income populations, reflecting the changes in Philadelphia's urban economy.
Table 2: Distribution of Household Income in Philadelphia
| Income Group | No. of Households | Percent of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Extremely Low-income (30% of MFI and below) | 139,449 | 23% |
| Low-income (31 to 50% of MFI) | 84,254 | 14% |
| Moderate-income (51% to 80% of MFI) | 117,809 | 20% |
| Middle-income (81% to 95% of MFI) | 50,373 | 8% |
| Other households | 208,855 | 35% |
Philadelphia is unique in that it has unusually high rates of homeownership. According to the 1990 Census, 62 percent of all Philadelphia households and 61 percent of Low- and Moderate-Income households lived in owner-occupied dwellings. Even as homeownership becomes an elusive goal for many families across the nation, housing costs in Philadelphia remain lower than in many other cities. For example, the census data revealed that 46 percent of all Philadelphia houses have a market value of less than $45,000.
The rate of homeownership has increased slightly overall (from 61.2 percent in 1980 to 62 percent in 1990). Between 1980 and 1990, homeownership rates increased across several racial/ethnic groups including whites, African Americans and Latinos, declining only among Native Americans and Asians.
Despite the growing numbers of homeowners in the city, thousands of families do not have the resources to repair or maintain their homes. Although many Low- and Moderate- Income residents are able to acquire housing, they face declining property values and deteriorated conditions over time due to an inability to keep up with repairs and basic maintenance.
According to the 1990 census, 38 percent of all Philadelphia households and 45 percent of low- and moderate-income households live in rental units. These numbers reflect a 5.2 percent decrease in renters since 1980; the decrease in the percentage of households who are renters may be due partly to the loss of affordable rental units. Family members of different generations, or even unrelated individuals, who would prefer to live apart are sometimes forced by circumstances to share a single dwelling.
On average, renters have lower incomes than homeowners, further suggesting that their housing may be more deteriorated and located in neighborhoods with more symptoms of distress. Renters also have an increased likelihood of living in housing that is unaffordable. Renters are almost twice as likely to experience both cost burdens and severe cost burdens in the housing market.
Although renters and homeowners in each income category have unique housing needs, these needs can be collapsed into two income strata, with Extremely-low and Low-Income groups comprising the lower stratum, and the Moderate- and Middle Income groups comprising the upper stratum. African-American and Latino households tend to be over- represented in the lower income stratum. Although African-Americans account for only 36 percent of all households in Philadelphia, they comprise 45 percent of households in the Extremely Low- and Low-Income strata. Likewise, Latino households comprise 4 percent of all households, but 6.5 percent of all households earning 50 percent of median income and below. The lower income stratum is largely composed of the working poor and unemployed among Philadelphia households, while the upper stratum primarily consists of working class households.
The broadest and the most intensive housing problems in Philadelphia are those which affect households in the lower income stratum. These Extremely Low- and Low-Income households are in the most immediate need of rental assistance and housing repair assistance. Typically these households lack the income necessary to escape the conditions of blight and disrepair associated with much of Philadelphia's housing stock, both rental and owner-occupied. Households in the upper stratum of income have more limited, specific needs arising from their household type (e.g., large families). Moderate- to middle- income communities need support to offset the effects of incipient blight. Finally, special needs populations, such as the elderly, also have extraordinary affordability problems as well as unique supportive or adaptive housing needs. These findings suggest that a range of services and housing resources are necessary to meet the needs of households with the lowest income, while targeted programs are required to address the specific problems encountered in the housing market by other low- and moderate-income households, and special needs populations.
According to a recent report prepared jointly by the Philadelphia HIV Prevention Community Planning Group (CPG) and the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (DPH), Philadelphia has the ninth highest cumulative incidence of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) among U.S. cities. As of September 30, 1994, there were 6,522 total reported cases of AIDS, including 3,509 deaths and 3,013 persons living with AIDS. AIDS is growing the fastest among women, infants and people of color, due both to an expanded definition of AIDS issued in 1993 by the Federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and to the growing proportion of Human Imunovirus transmission through heterosexual sex and intravenous drug use. The expanded definition of AIDS has also caused a jump in the total number of AIDS cases reported: in Philadelphia, reported cases in 1993 increased by 175 percent. However, health officials estimate that at least 17 percent of this increase can be attributed to the actual spread of the epidemic under the old definition. Over two-thirds (69.6 percent) of reported AIDS incidence in the nine-county Philadelphia Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA) has occurred in Philadelphia.
The CPG estimates that between 21,000 and 24,000 persons in Philadelphia are HIV positive. As many as 35,000 persons in the Philadelphia PMSA may be HIV positive. These estimates strongly suggest that the number of persons living with AIDS in Philadelphia is likely to increase dramatically over the next five years. In 1991, the Department of Public Health estimated that by 1995 there would be at least 2,000 persons living with AIDS in Philadelphia. By mid-1993, this number had already been reached-in part because of the CDC changes in the AIDS definition, but also because medical advances have allowed persons with AIDS to live longer.
While it is difficult to arrive at precise numbers of persons who need housing subsidies, assisted or supported living arrangements, or other housing services, The Philadelphia AIDS Consortium (TPAC) estimates that 60 percent of persons with AIDS need housing counseling services and 40 percent will require emergency or transitional housing at some point in their illness. At any time, 45 percent need rental subsidies in order to afford housing and 35 percent need supportive services. With rental assistance, many persons with AIDS can live independently by taking advantage of a broad array of supportive services which are brought into their homes, such as visiting nurse services, homemaker services and meals. The lack of adequate supportive services in group or boarding residences has confined some persons with AIDS to their homes. These persons would be better cared for in a supportive housing environment.
Persons who are HIV-positive and have not been diagnosed with AIDS can more often live independently but may require rental assistance because they cannot work or cannot afford market rate housing. TPAC estimates that 75 percent of persons who are HIV-positive could benefit from rental assistance. Some of these persons may be asymptomatic, but are low-income and need rental assistance unrelated to their disease. In addition, approximately 75 percent of pediatric HIV/AIDS patients need housing assistance. These data can be interpreted as indicating that as many as 1,200 Philadelphia households with a person with AIDS need supportive housing in some form. Perhaps 1,300 persons with AIDS in Philadelphia could utilize rental subsidies or subsidized housing through PHA and could maintain their own apartments with few or no supportive services.
Services to persons with mental disabilities are provided through the Office of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (OMH/MR) in the Department of Public Health (DPH), which estimates that there are 20,800 persons in Philadelphia with mild to profound mental disabilities. Almost half the total resources of the program are devoted to delivering residential services. There are five models of supportive housing for mentally disabled persons, the predominant service model is the three- to six-person Community Living Arrangement (CLA). OMH/MR anticipates that 1,565 clients will be served in supportive housing facilities in FY'95.
Current waiting lists indicate an unmet need for 1,104 additional residential placements, and 657 people require enhancements to their living arrangements. OMH/MR finds clear evidence that the availability of residential settings must be increased year by year for an indefinite period (In some parts of the city, development of these options has been limited by strong community opposition to group homes). The need for accessible housing, both supportive and without a personal services component, is especially acute: approximately 20 percent of all persons with mental retardation also have impaired mobility, vision, or hearing.
OMH/MR provides some form of non-residential supportive service to over 9,000 individuals and their families. An additional 5,000 adults and families need such services but are not receiving them.
According to its FY'94-'95 two-year Plan for Mental Health Services, OMH/MR estimates that there are 129,500 adults with mental illness in Philadelphia, of whom 68,900 have serious mental-illness-related problems. Supportive housing is available and currently provided for 1,459 clients.
OMH/MR believes that there is an unmet need to accommodate 5,000 more clients in supported permanent housing and to provide rapid-access housing for 100 homeless clients. There is also a need for specialized supportive housing for two populations: OMH/MR clients with HIV and OMH/MR clients who are also physically disabled.
In addition, over 39,000 adult clients are currently receiving non-institutional, non-housing- based supportive services; 88,000 unserved adults are believed to need such services.
According to the Coordinating Office for Drug and Alcohol Abuse Programs (CODAAP) cocaine addiction is now its most serious problem. It accounts for almost 60 percent of all treatment admissions to the CODAAP system. There were 10,004 admissions for the treatment of cocaine abuse in FY'93.
The first substantial wave of babies born addicted to cocaine entered the Philadelphia public school system in 1992. A study by DPH estimated that in 1989 there were approximately 5,000 drug-involved births in Philadelphia, most of which involved cocaine. In 1992, a survey of eight hospitals found that 14.3 percent of births were to cocaine- using mothers.
Drug use continues at high levels among even the youngest of Philadelphia's school children. Latch-key children comprise another population at high risk for both substance abuse and drug dealing. A recent report by the Philadelphia School-Age Child-Care Coalition stated that there are about 50,000 children within the city between the ages of 5 and 13 who are without supervision after school, during vacations and on school holidays. The report describes a direct "link between unsupervised children and experimentation with sex, drugs, alcohol and matches.". According to a 1990 evaluation of drug prevention reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer, 13 percent of first-graders and 22 percent of third- graders in Philadelphia have used alcohol.
CODAAP maintains a network of residential substance abuse treatment services through contracts with 14 licensed non-profit organizations which provide 777 inpatient treatment slots at 25 residential facilities. Average lengths of stay range from five days for detoxification programs to several months in residential drug free settings. The availability of treatment pales in relation to demand. The average waiting period for admission to treatment is approximately 10 days. Often, when individuals complete their treatment program, they have no place to go and must be discharged either to the street or to a shelter. Providers of homeless outreach services for drug- and alcohol-abuse treatment and prevention have determined that 12,260 known clients are in need of supportive housing.
As of March 1995, there were 45,648.persons making up 15,755 households in Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) conventional and scattered site housing units. PHA units are largely occupied by minority groups of extremely low income: African Americans make up 92 percent of all PHA residents; Latinos 5 percent and whites 2 percent. Among heads of households, 11 percent receive income from employment; 45 percent receive public assistance and 36 percent receive either Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). More than 75 percent of all PHA households have incomes below $10,000, which is less than 25 percent of the median family income for the Philadelphia area. These findings verify that PHA residents are in need of a variety of services to foster self- sufficiency, including job training, basic adult education, job readiness programs and case management.
With 48 percent of PHA residents under the age of 18, there is also a clear need for recreational and social programs geared specifically for youth. Day care and Head Start programs benefit children while enabling their parents to participate in job training and employment. More than one-fifth of all PHA heads of households are over the age of 62, and 6 percent are over the age of 75, indicating a need for senior centers and services which will enable seniors to continue live independently as they grow older. According to data complied annually by PHA, persons with disabilities make up 11 percent of all residents. Surveys conducted by PHA as part of its Section 504 assessment found that 970 survey respondents identified themselves as disabled.
Homelessness emerged as a critical problem for Philadelphia in the early 1980s. By 1984, Philadelphia established the Office of Services for the Homeless and Adults (OSHA) to oversee the city's shelter system and to administer the city's federal and local resources devoted toward the homeless. Since that time, the number of homeless people in Philadelphia has continued to grow. Intense poverty and joblessness, as well as rising levels of drug and alcohol abuse are the driving forces behind the city's homeless problem. The Philadelphia housing market is able to provide housing affordable to many moderate- and middle-income households, however, those with extremely low- and low-incomes are often forced to pay inordinate portions of their income for basic shelter. Those at the absolute lowest end of the income scale can easily be locked out of the housing market altogether and find themselves among the ranks of the homeless. This section presents a profile of the homeless population in Philadelphia, including a discussion of the nature and extent of family and individual homelessness, the needs of various sub-populations of the homeless and of those households most at risk of homelessness.
The level of homelessness in Philadelphia is fairly well-documented. Since December 1989, OSHA has been entering data on all homeless persons receiving shelter or other housing interventions into a computer database. It shows that during the twelve months ending June 30, 1994, OSHA served 19,107 homeless clients. This number is an unduplicated, point-in-time estimate, derived from OSHA data, and shows that 4,750 homeless persons received shelter for at least one night during the unusually cold week of March 2-8, 1993.
OSHA's database is complemented by that of the Outreach Coordination Center (OCC), now operated through Project H.O.M.E. During the winter months, teams deployed by OCC each night record information on all persons encountered who are apparently inhabiting streets, sidewalks, subway concourses and other locations not usually used for human habitation. OCC found evidence of a growing street population: 2,183 unsheltered persons were identified during the winter of 1993 while 2,586 were counted in 1994; an increase of 18 percent.
For planning purposes, the Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing has established an estimated minimum figure of 24,000 homeless people in Philadelphia, including both sheltered and unsheltered. There is some disagreement on this figure. The Coalition on Homelessness in Pennsylvania, the Homeless Union, the Mayor's Commission on Homelessness, and the Philadelphia Committee to End Homelessness believe that there are as many as 35,000 homeless while other Philadelphia experts estimate that there are only 15,000 to 20,000 homeless.
In the 1994 study, "Public Shelter Admission Rates in Philadelphia and New York City: The Implications of Turnover for Sheltered Population Counts," the authors argue that these estimates should not be interpreted as representing a static pool of chronically homeless people. Instead most people experience only brief episodes of homelessness. Also, the associated high turnover in the City's shelter system suggests that a broader segment of the population experiences and is at risk of homelessness than was previously thought Using data from the City's centralized homeless intake unit, the authors found that 43,965 Philadelphia residents were homeless at some time over the two-year period from 1990 to 1992; this figure represents 2.8 percent of the city's population, and an estimated 11 to 14 percent of the city's poor.
Homelessness is a phenomenon experienced both by single individuals and by families, although the dynamics of homelessness differ across the two groups. For example, in Philadelphia, street homelessness is confined exclusively to individuals. In 1993, the OCC found no unsheltered families in conducting its survey of the street population.
There is evidence of a growth in the proportion of the homeless population made up of individuals. Data collected by OSHA in FY 1993 found that 60 percent of Philadelphia's homeless population was comprised of individuals, with families accounting for the other 40 percent. During FY 1994, the proportion of homeless individuals grew to 70 percent of the homeless population. This trend is expected to continue with the cuts in public benefits available to individuals implemented under Act 49, which went into effect at the beginning of FY 1995.
From data gathered on persons seeking shelter during FY 1994, homeless individuals were most likely to be male (73 percent) while 92 percent of all homeless families were single- parent families headed by women in their 20s.
Other exacerbating influences that are widening the housing affordability gap include the dissolution of the nuclear and extended family networks and changing values, the stagnation of public benefit levels, and in some neighborhoods, sustained drug related crime. The continued denial of public welfare and training, or other supports to gain employment, leaves many single adults between the ages of 18 and 45 without income or tools to provide for themselves. More than half of the homeless have not completed high- school and OSHA estimates that one-third lack any job skills. In addition, the Pennsylvania Legislature enacted cuts in the General Assistance Program (effective July 1, 1994), that the City expects will lead to a significant increase in the number of single adults seeking shelter during the next 12 months.
HCDI has noted a recent increase in the number of homeless and "imminently homeless" persons with disabilities. It is difficult to get good information on the number of homeless disabled persons. According to HCDI, the imminently homeless among the disabled include people who are being discharged from institutions or nursing homes with no accessible housing available for them. Advocates for the homeless disabled anticipate an increase in this population as a result of the recently enacted Nursing Home Reform Act. The "disabled and at risk" population also includes the following: individuals who are newly disabled, often as a result of traumatic accidents or violent crime; and others who have been disabled for some time and, because of economic and interpersonal stresses, are finding it difficult to sustain long-term living arrangements with family or friends.
Persons who had recently been institutionalized no longer appear for shelter in large numbers. The nearest state mental hospital closed over two years ago, eliminating the potential for a new large influx of homeless persons with mental illness. The 1990 census reports only 505 persons (.03 percent of the general population) in Philadelphia mental hospitals. The previously de-institutionalized and never-institutionalized mentally ill population are already in the community. However, since there is an inadequate supply of the housing and support services which should give this population a better alternative to institutionalization, many have no choice but to live in poor conditions between episodes on the street.
An aging housing stock, persistent population loss and declining incomes among residents have led to extensive housing deterioration and abandonment, as well as a high incidence of affordability and housing problems for lower income groups and special needs populations. This section provides additional detail on the state of the housing stock and surveys the housing resources available to lower income and special needs populations.
Most of Philadelphia's housing units are in structures with less than five units, typically single-family rowhouses or buildings that were built as single-family houses and later divided. The majority, 373,940 units, are owner-occupied; another 229,135 are occupied by renters.
From 1980 to 1990, the median sales price for a home in Philadelphia increased from $23,700 to $49,400, while the median monthly rent increased from $168 to $358. According to data recently published by the Philadelphia Board of Realtors, the 1994 median sales price in Philadelphia was $61,900. The current fair market rents in Philadelphia are $459 for efficiencies, $565 for one-bedroom apartments, $697 for two- bedroom apartments and $872 for three-bedroom apartments. The private market demand for housing in Philadelphia has not been strong since the late 1980s, when recession and uncertainty about the city's future halted the rapid escalation in real estate prices. The weak market has, however, preserved the affordability of many units throughout the city.
Though Philadelphia has an ample supply of housing units at prices that middle class residents can afford, the housing problems facing low-income families are severe. The age and deteriorated condition of the city's housing stock has led to the abandonment of many homes by families who do not have the resources to repair or maintain them.
In 1990, Philadelphia had 674,899 total housing units, a decrease of 1.5 percent from 1980. The number of occupied units decreased at a much higher rate, 2.7 percent. As a result, in 1990 there were 71,824 vacant units in Philadelphia, 10 percent more than in 1980. Vacant houses represented over 10 percent of the total housing stock. Of these 15,774 were long-term vacant, a 29-percent increase in 10 years. Vacant rental units increased by 26 percent and homeownership units increased by 23 percent, while the number awaiting occupancy decreased 71 percent.
Inventory of Public and Assisted Housing Public Housing The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) is the third largest housing authority in the nation, overseeing nearly 23,000 public housing units. The housing resources administered by PHA, including both public housing and Section 8 subsidies, are critical to meeting the housing needs of the lower-income residents of Philadelphia. PHA is currently reorganizing its administrative departments and reforming its operational procedures to improve its responsiveness and efficiency. Because of PHA's progress in reorganizing its Modernization Division, HUD removed it from the "mod-troubled" housing authorities list in August 1994. PHA will work even more closely with OHCD, the Redevelopment Authority (RDA), the Public Housing Development Council (PHDC) and OSHA to develop a coordinated and comprehensive approach to affordable housing delivery. This section lists the resources and the initiatives underway to improve the management of PHA housing units.
PHA is responsible for 22,545 standing public housing units, of which 7,291 are in scat tered sites with the remainder in developments. Currently 4,833 units are vacant with a much higher fraction of vacancies occurring within scattered-site units than in conventional public housing developments. Eliminating these vacancies is an ongoing task for PHA that is attracting new resources and innovative strategies. PHA was recently awarded $22 million from HUD's Vacancy Reduction Program to rehabilitate 1,130 vacancies across 19 developments, and more than 400 scattered-site vacancies. Since March 1994, a Job Order Contracting System (JOCS) has expedited vacancy reduction by providing a swift and simple means of utilizing outside contractors for vacant unit rehab. PHDC is rehabilitating vacant scattered-site public housing units in North Philadelphia through an intergovernmental agreement between PHA and OHCD.
Two of PHA's largest developments, Richard Allen Homes and Raymond RosenApartments, are slated for major revitalization through two separate programs. PHA was awarded $50 million in HOPE VI funding to completely redesign Richard Allen Homes, transforming both the environmental and social character of the development. Five vacant and obsolete high rise buildings will be demolished at Raymond Rosen Apartments, making way for new mid-rise and townhouse units for families and elderly people.
Comprehensive modernization will proceed in other developments through
Comprehensive Grant Program (CGP) allocations. Since reorganizing its
Modernization Division, PHA has executed agreements for more than $200 million
in modernization services. In addition to the sites mentioned above, major
modernization project ' s are underway at Norman Blumberg Apartments, Fairhill
Apartments, Parkview Apartments, Passyunk Homes, Champlost Homes, Bartram
Village, Emlen Arms and Wilson Park. PHA has also successfully contracted with
a consultant to chronicle the historic significance of its eight oldest
developments which are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
Historic recordation will enable modernization activity to move more swiftly and
will preserve aspects of architecture which are aesthetically pleasing and of
historical importance.
This strategic plan offers a comprehensive approach to meeting the most urgent needs of Philadelphia's residents by strengthening and expanding housing resources that have proven effective in improving neighborhoods and broadening economic opportunity. The following section presents the City's three-year comprehensive housing and community development strategy.
Housing production alone is no longer adequate, but must be accompanied by coordinated service delivery to support residents and ensure long-term occupancy. City-supported development ventures should combine housing with accessible services available to residents on an ongoing basis.
To the greatest extent possible, the City's funding should be used to support the implementation of plans which are organized at the community level in coordination with the City and neighborhood, business, and institutional interests.
Goal 1. Building Community Organization Capacity
Continue to support activities to increase the ability of community-based organizations to participate in developing and implementing neighborhood strategic plans.
Goal 2. Develop More Transitional and Permanent Housing
Continue to reduce the number of people living in shelters or on the streets by increasing the transitional and permanent housing units available to the homeless.
Goal 3. Promoting Homeownership and Housing Preservation
Continue large-scale sales housing development ventures, sustaining support for programs for first-time homebuyers and increasing support for major systems repair programs for current homeowners.
Goal 4. Improving Public Housing
Use CDBG resources to substantially improve public housing production and service delivery system.
Goal 5. Leveraging Private Sector Resources
Organize resources to leverage substantial commitments of private sector funding for investment in Philadelphia.
Goal 6. Advancing Employment and Training Opportunities
Maximize the jobs potential of City-funded development and services by closely coordinating developers, employment and training service providers, and community organizations prior to project funding approvals.
The general objectives of Philadelphia's Year 21 Consolidated Plan, three-year strategic plan can be summarized as follows:
These goals and principals provide the broad framework within which the
Office of Housing and Community Development intends to address the specific
housing needs exhibited by extremely low- to moderate-income renter and owner
households; the needs for housing and service resources exhibited by homeless
families and individuals including prevention, permanent and transitional
housing and supportive services; housing and services for persons with HIV/AIDS
and other non-homeless special needs populations; and non-housing community
development needs.
The following Housing projects will be undertaken in response to the housing affordability crisis and part of the Year 21 Action Plan:
The Year 21 Philadelphia Consolidated Plan provides further information on the full range of activities to be undertaken in these neighborhoods.
MAP 2 depicts points of interest, empowerment zones, and low-moderate income areas.
MAP 3 depicts points of interest, empowerment zones, low-moderate income areas, and proposed HUD funded projects.
MAP 4 is a map, sectioned by neighborhood, which depicts points of interest, empowerment zones, low-moderate income areas, and proposed HUD funded projects.
TABLE (without associated map) provides information about the project(s).
Deborah McColloch, Deputy Director
Office of Housing and Community Development
PH: (215) 686-9774
email: graves@philadelphia.libertynet.org
