Communities need good access to jobs and transit
 

Today, HUD Secretary Julian Castro introduced new nationwide rules in Chicago that will provide guidance to help cities fulfill the 1968 Fair Housing Act by promoting racially integrated neighborhoods with access to transit, jobs, and schools.

The Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) supports these new rules and we agree with Sec. Castro that for far too long federal efforts have fallen short, said Jacky Grimshaw, Vice President for Policy at CNT.

“Housing programs can turn the tide on segregation by proactively creating walkable communities with good access to transit and economic opportunity,” said Kyle Smith, Transit-Oriented Development Manager at the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT). “As Secretary Castro said, connected communities need good access to transit, jobs, schools, and groceries.”

“Without an emphasis on transit and jobs, we run the risk of additional dislocation of low income households from economic opportunity through sprawl,” Smith added. “For example, the Illinois Housing Development Authority has created Opportunity Areas for its investments where residents cannot access a single job within a 30-minute transit ride.”

CNT is a local and national leader in fostering inclusive communities built around transit, and we have a suite of data tools and policies to help communities meet them through equitable TOD.

Our All Transit database measures the access to jobs and economic opportunity via transit from a given location and our Housing and Transporation (H+T) Affordability Index measures the impact of transportation on the cost of living at the neighborhood level. Our joint guidebook with Open Communities, Quality of Life, (e)Quality of Place, lays out the zoning, transportation, and fair housing strategies communities that need to implement equitable transit-oriented development (TOD).