Unhoused-New Urban Planning Needed. Substance Over Style, Function Over Form

The New Yorker June 1, 2020 pp29-39 Letter from San Francisco “Too Far From Home” “What one city can teach us about the crisis of the unhoused” by Nathan Heller

If you believe we are now reaching an “inflection point” where things change from negative to positive then this is a timely piece. Nathan Heller walks us through the streets of San Francisco speaking with the unhoused and with those leaders actively engaged on the front lines.

As an example of what is working, the St. Anthony Foundation (SAF) and St. Anthony Neighborhood is highlighted. Located in the Tenderloin a place “that has a reputation for being haunted by the living”. “Unhoused people gather [in the Tenderloin because] they know their presence won’t turn heads”. SAF serves thousands of meals throughout the day, has a computer lab, free toiletries, donated clothing, medical- and substance-abuse clinics. They serve a diverse population consisting of young people, middle-aged men, and elderly Asian women. On the St. Anthony’s block there is cooperation and coordination of space and resources-there is “a community”. The neighborhood stakeholders realize that the local unhoused need a place to sleep. And the unhoused realize the sidewalks must be cleared by 0600 for sidewalk cleaning to then make right-of-way for children and parents coming and going to the local school. Another notable group, Abode Services, “financed by a mix of private philanthropy-contributions largely from Silicon Valley-and affordable housing funds is the largest “housing services provider in the Bay Area". CEO Louis Chicoine says “What we found is, sure enough, if you give people a home and basic services to go along with it, they’ll thrive at very high rates”. There are several other organizations with unique and validated approaches that are mentioned as well. In common all these organizations depend greatly on the efforts and leadership of exceptional individuals. As great as they are in making a difference, these programs usually are unable to scale up locally or be adapted elsewhere. A fraction of individuals permanently escape homelessness but we are really treading water and need greater commitment to change-systematic solutions that get to the underlying economic and healthcare disparities.

Homelessness can happen quickly even amongst those considered to be well compensated-low income in SF is below $117,000 for a family of four ($82,000 individual, $64,000 in NYC and $67,000 in Seattle). A single change in personal circumstances can find one moving from having a single-residence, to Airbnb, to couch surfing, to living in a car, to living in a shelter while still holding some employment. With one in five hundred being without housing homelessness is surprisingly commonplace. NYC has the most unhoused accounting for 14% of America's total followed by DC, Hawaii and California. Because NYC has shelter bed capacity its unhoused are mostly hidden from view . The homeless are increasingly more obvious in California-former encampments consisting of open fields and abandon buildings have given way to redevelopment and shelter beds are lacking by more than 50%.

Half of the homeless have mental health issues and a large fraction suffer from substance abuse but economic factors, specifically a mismatch between working wage and rents, is driving homelessness. Many homeless are working and have been in stable housing before. Affordable housing near jobs is greatly needed. “California’s stringent zoning and construction regulations” contribute to slow progress in supplying more housing. As a result rental pricing has increased while real wages, except for the top ten percent of earners, have declined. This mismatch is a root cause of the housing challenge. Experts note that rates of homeless jumped when rent costs reached 22% of wage. Rents now in SF consume 39% of the median wage.

“By some estimates” nearly 500,000 affordable and 250,000 other housing units are needed “to balance the market”. Even where citizens are receptive and partial funding exists, politicians can’t agree on next steps-build more units or fund the homeless directly or both. Heller cites “The Death and Life of Great American Cities (1961) by Jane Jacobs. Jacobs believed “successful neighborhoods as ecosystems held together by human difference; they depended on coordination among individuals, not on aesthetic ideals or notions of proper ‘use’. Seems housing, basic income support and a new community vision is needed.