HISTORY MATTERS: UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF POLICY, RACE AND REAL ESTATE IN TODAY’S GEOGRAPHY OF HEALTH EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY
IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY
Presentation and Panel Discussion: The City Club of Cleveland
February 18th 2015 – Cleveland, OH
Jason Reece – [email protected]
Director of Research, The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity
Lecturer, City & Regional Planning Program, Knowlton School of Architecture
The Ohio State University
In Collaboration with PlaceMatters Cuyahoga County.
HISTORY MATTERS: WHY LOOK BACK BEFORE LOOKING FORWARD?
“History doesn’t repeat itself but it does rhyme.” - Mark Twain
Cleveland 1952 & 2014; From the Institute for Quality Communities: http://iqc.ou.edu/2014/12/12/60yrsmidwest/
HISTORY MATTERS: WHY LOOK BACK BEFORE LOOKING FORWARD?Legacy Concerns: The legacy and long term impacts of
development history on the built environment and social fabric
Life Course Perspective: If we can look at a person’s health
through a longitudinal lens (the life course perspective) – then why not look at a neighborhoods through the same lens of time?
Place Matters: How did places become opportunity
rich or opportunity poor?
Policy Matters: How did historical policy shape the
community we see today?
PLACE MATTERS: THE IMPORTANCE OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT HISTORY
Understanding today’s environmental landscape and built environment requires historical context
There were a number of development practices and policies which have shaped our current built environment and human settlement patterns
Today’s built environment is not a “natural landscape” but is influenced deeply by these development practices
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RACE MATTERS: UNDERSTANDING OUR CONFLICTED HISTORY OF RACE, CLASS & REAL ESTATE
Racial and social exclusion, and exploitation were primary driving forces in 20th century urban development
When we look at today’s landscape of inequality, we must understand the historical drivers which created this landscape
These factors have strongly influenced current conditions are have direct policy implications for today
5
HISTORICAL DRIVERS OF RACIAL SEGREGATION AND OPPORTUNITY ISOLATION FOR COMMUNITIES OF COLOR
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Racial
Segregation &
Opportunity
Isolation
Zoning & Land
Use Practices
Redlining &
Investment
Practices
Urban Renewal,
Public Housing &
Federal Highway
Policies
Explicit Racial
Discrimination &
Intimidation
Practices
FIRST RACIAL ZONING ORDINANCE IN 1910/1911 (BALTIMORE): USED PUBLIC HEALTH LANGUAGE AS JUSTIFICATION)
"Blacks should be quarantined in isolated slums in order to reduce the incidents of civil disturbance, to prevent the spread of communicable disease into the nearby White neighborhoods, and to protect property values among the White majority." Baltimore Mayor Bary Mahool, 1910
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RACIAL ZONING, EXPULSIVE ZONING, EXCLUSIONARY ZONING
Zoning used to prevent certain populations from living in a community Protect economic interests of communities
Great Migration and Urbanization Cleveland’s African American population grows
from 8,500 to 72,000 between 1910 and 1930
Racial Zoning was struck down in 1917, but the racist character persisted Aggressive use of racially/ethnically restrictive
covenants
Expulsive zoning: Undesirable land uses targeted to low income and or racial/ethnic communities
Use of zoning to restrict specific housing types
Village of Euclid, Ohio v Ambler Realty Co Zoning Practices Spread
Missouri Racial Zoning Campaign Advertisement
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RACIAL COVENANTS
Covenant is a contract imposed on the deed of a buyer of property
Mutual agreements between property owners that prevented sale to certain people based on race
Became common after 1926-Corrigan vs Buckley- Affirmed the right of private individuals to impose covenants
Reflected the rise of the KKK and the suburban boom of the 1920s
Maintained racial segregation
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COVENANTS IN OHIO & CLEVELAND
Covenants were prolific throughout Ohio’s major urban areas A study of Columbus developments from 1921 to 1935 found 67 of 101 (or 67% of all) subdivisions platted & developed during this time to included restrictive convents
In Cleveland, According to an NAACP branch report: By 1914 Cleveland housing exhibited “a noticeable tendency toward inserting clauses in real estate deeds restricting the transfer of the property to colored people, Jews, and foreigners generally.” Source: African Americans and the Color Line in Ohio, 1915-1930.
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COVENANTS IN CLEVELANDCase Study: Shaker Heights & Forest Hill
“surroundings ... where your neighbors are inevitably people of tastes in common with yours .... The careful restrictions placed on Forest Hill today will never be lowered.” Advertisement by Abeyton Realty, developer of the Forest Hill
allotment in Cleveland Heights1929
Covenants in Shaker Heights and Forest Hill often did not specify racial restrictions, but required the consent of the developer and neighbors to sell
Shaker Heights neighborhood associations and developers aggressively pushed convents
“ever-present menace to every resident of Shaker Village and throughout Cleveland.... Unless a street is 100% signed up for restrictions, ... the danger of an undesirable neighbor is an ever-present one.” Shaker Heights Protective Association 1925
Deferring Dreams: Racial and Religious Covenants in Shaker Heights,Cleveland Heights and East Cleveland, 1925 to 1970. By Marian Morton
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A NUMBER OF FEDERAL POLICIES WOULD RADICALLY RESHAPE URBAN AMERICAThe Build Out of SuburbiaThe FHA and the creation of the standard mortgage 1934
The GI Bill 1944
Federal Highway Act 1953
Infrastructure Subsidizes for New Suburbs
The Demolition of Urban AreasUrban Renewal 1949
High rise public housing
Berman v Parker (1954): Justification of using eminent domain for blight removal
Federal Highway Act 1953
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SUBURBAN GROWTH & RACE
New developments restricted to communities of color & African American communities redlined
In the prime suburb-shaping years (1930-1960) Less than one-percent of all African Americans were able to obtain a mortgage
In Cleveland African Americans were primarily excluded to Hough, Glenville, Mount Pleasant and Central during this time
Formation of “White” America Suburbia becomes the first space in which White ethnic identities dissolve
“If a neighborhood is to retain stability, it is
necessary that properties shall continue
to be occupied by the same social and
racial classes. A change in social or
racial occupancy generally contributes
to instability and a decline in values.”
–Excerpt from the 1947 FHA underwriting manual
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CRISIS, RESILIENCY & PROGRESS FOR CIVIL RIGHTSHough Civil Disorder
Bombings Targeting Integrationists
Federal Fair Housing Act
School Desegregation Efforts
Ludlow Community Association
Heights Community Congress
Advocacy Planning Era
Rise of the CDC Sector
Land Bank
Cuyahoga Plan of Ohio
Protestors seek to block Stephen Howe School Construction in 1964.
REDLINING: 1930’S TO 1970The FHA explicitly practiced a policy of “redlining” when determining which neighborhoods to approve mortgages in. Redlining is the practice of denying or limiting financial services to certain neighborhoods based on racial or ethnic composition without regard to the residents’ qualifications or creditworthiness. The term “redlining” refers to the practice of using a red line on a map to delineate the area where financial institutions would not invest.- The Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston
This American Life, Nov 22, 2013
- “House Rules” (listen to 20:17-25:00)16
UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT ON NEIGHBORHOODS & RACIAL EQUITY
Redlining
DisinvestmentHousing Decline
Predatory LendingProperty Value Loss
Asset Wealth Loss, Dwindling Tax Base
Foreclosure & Vacancy
Crime & Safety,Health Problems
“Million Dollar Blocks”Infant Mortality, LBWAsthma LeadDiabetes
Racial Wealth GapCity Services and Maintenance 20
Where do African Americans
live in Cleveland Today?
1940 HOLC Map
Security Ratings
A
B
C
D
Industrial
2011 Population
% African American
61% - 100%
41% - 60%
21% - 40%
11% - 20%
0% - 10%
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Which
Neighborhoods
Received the Most
High-Cost Mortgage
Loans?
High-Cost Loan Rate
60.1% - 81.4%
40.1% - 60%
20.1% - 40%
0% - 20%
1940 HOLC Map
Security Ratings
A
B
C
D
Industrial22
15.4%
24.0%
35.2%
54.1%
14.7%
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
A B C D Not Rated in 1940
Housing Indicators by 1940 HOLC Rating
High-Cost Rate Foreclosure Rate Vacancy Rate
Total Release (lbs)
930,240 - 3,387,639
435,528 - 930,239
88,419 - 435,527
0 - 88,418
1940 HOLC Map
Security Ratings
A
B
C
D
Industrial
Where is Toxic Release
Concentrated in
Cleveland?
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Infant Deaths/ 1000
29.3 - 95.7
15.1 - 29.2
6.0 - 15.0
0.0 - 5.9
1940 HOLC Map
Security Ratings
A
B
C
D
Industrial
Which
Neighborhoods
Experience the
Highest Rates of
Infant Mortality?
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0.0000
2.0000
4.0000
6.0000
8.0000
10.0000
12.0000
14.0000
[A-green] [A/B] [B-blue] [B/C] [C-yellow] [C/D] [D-red] Not Rated
Infant Mortality Rate Neonatal Mortality Rate Post-Neonatal Mortality Rate
WHAT SHOULD WE LEARN FROM THIS HISTORYValues influence policy. Value infused policies shape systems, which either help to produce prosperity for all or create barriers to opportunity for some.
Historical policies have long-term, residual implications that need to be taken into account when designing solutions for today.
There is nothing “natural” about today’s challenges, nor are they unsolvable. Significant change can begin through coordinated efforts focused on fidelity to principles of equity and inclusion.
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THANK YOU & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSKIRWANINSTITUTE.OSU.EDU Kirwan Institute & OSU City & Regional Planning Team
Jason Reece, The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity
Matt Martin, The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity
Joshua Bates, City & Regional Planning Program, KSA
Amanda Golden, City & Regional Planning Program, KSA
Kelsey, Mailman, City & Regional Planning Program, KSA
Ronni Nimps, City & Regional Planning Program, KSA
The Cuyahoga County PlaceMatters TeamMichele Benko, Program Manager, Wellness and Prevention, Cuyahoga County Board of Health
Sandra Byrd Chappelle, Founder and Principal, Strategic Solutions Partners, LLC
Gregory L. Brown, Executive Director, PolicyBridge, Inc.
Daniel Calloway
Shakyra Diaz, Policy Manager, ACLU of Ohio
Marka Fields, Chief City Planner, City of Cleveland
Kim Foreman, Interim Executive Director, Environmental Health Watch
Vedette Gavin, Director of Community Engagement,, Case Center for Reducing Health Disparities
Martha Halko, Deputy Director, Prevention and Wellness, Cuyahoga County Board of Health
Sabrina L. Roberts
http://kirwan.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapTour/index.html?appid=23e4692987af425897779dd90bab2c5a&webmap=1bdbc65d84ef4457a35da519d8f3d5e2
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