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Click on any of the questions below to read the answer to
questions that are frequently asked regarding the Seattle Housing
Authority's replacement housing program for HOPE VI communities.
Why doesn't the Seattle Housing Authority replace all of the
housing it is tearing down right there in the same location?
The HOPE VI program does not support replacing all of the
original low-income housing on site. One program goal is the
de-concentration of low-income housing. The Seattle Housing
Authority also supports the transformation of these communities
from low-income enclaves to mixed-income neighborhoods.
Also, the housing authority does not have access to funding that
would make this possible. Capital grants received annually from
the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are not
sufficient.
Why isn't all of the housing being replaced as traditional
public housing?
Traditional public housing requires on-going annual operating
subsidy from HUD, which has been steadily eroding over the past
ten years as the federal government has been allocating less and
less funding to traditional public housing. The federal government is not supporting the construction
of any new public housing.
What is the role of Housing Choice
Vouchers (Section 8) in replacement housing?
Housing Choice Vouchers are used by the housing authority to
provide on-going operating subsidy to replacement housing units
owned and managed by SHA or other non-profit organizations. Rather than
assigning the voucher to a specific tenant, the housing authority
assigns the voucher to an apartment. In this way the housing
provider receives enough subsidy to make the unit available to extremely
low-income residents, those with incomes under 30 percent of the
area median income.
Why is SHA replacing traditional family
housing open to anyone on SHA's waiting list with housing that is
restricted to the elderly?
Elderly single-person households have always been a large
component of SHA's resident mix, as well as making up a large
portion of the waiting list. By building housing specifically for
the elderly, SHA is taking advantage of federal funding for this
type of housing while preparing for the future when additional
housing for the elderly will be needed even more than it is now.
How is the HOPE VI program in
Seattle different from HOPE VI in other parts of the country?
Seattle has received national recognition for its effective
use of the HOPE VI program. The HOPE VI program does not require
that housing authorities replace all of the housing that is lost
to HOPE VI redevelopment.
Consequently, in many parts of the country, HOPE VI really does
result in a reduction of the amount of housing available to those
with very low incomes. In Seattle, however, the housing authority
has made a commitment to one-for-one replacement, and is carrying
through on that promise.
Also, Seattle has made a significant effort to include residents
in the planning and development of the new HOPE VI communities.
Residents have participated in design workshops, policy-making and
other aspects of planning for and implementing the new
neighborhoods.
Seattle also has a higher than usual return rate for residents
coming back into the redeveloped communities. Of the original
832 residents of the old Holly Park, 254 expressed a preference
to return to the new community. Of those 254, 227 households
eventually returned to NewHolly. This represented over
twenty-seven percent of the original population returning, which
is higher than the national average.
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