Housing Focus Group
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Housing Focus Group
Date of focus group : November 16 , 2020 Facilitators : Mindy Cochran and Jennifer Wichmann Demographics of the group
• Gender : Male ( 1 ), Female ( 4 )
• Race / Ethnicity : White ( 3 ), African American ( 2 )
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Summary : In general , focus group members describe Arlington as a microcosm of the nation related to race and ethnic relations , however , they also expressed their opinion that things have been exacerbated because of the highly charged areas of the country . When asked if people live in particular areas of Arlington because of race and ethnicity , participants largely responded that people live in the areas of the City where they can afford to live , not necessarily where they want to live , and several think their neighborhood is diverse . They raised concerns about the quality of education in the lower income areas of the City , and suggested the City consider requiring a set aside of affordable units for every development built . Members largely believed the challenges related to housing were because of wages not keeping up with rising housing costs , and to find affordable housing , you have to live in lower income areas where the City is not investing , and there is little opportunity . The lack of transportation was also raised as it relates to housing , because despite Via , they felt having a vehicle was a priority over housing as it is seen as a means to employment . Representatives from the homeless community stated that if people had to choose , they ’ d choose a vehicle over housing . Members agreed that your zip code determines your quality of life , and cited such disparities as the availability of fresh food , the quality of grocery stores , parks , safety , and the cost of food and gasoline ( higher in lower income areas ). In closing comments , the group emphasized the need to integrate affordable housing throughout the city versus concentrating it in certain areas .
Quote Highlights
• My brother-in-law has a very African sounding name and my sister doesn ’ t . And so they learned very early on that she ’ s the one that puts her name on applications for rental housing .
• To get into I , myself , I ’ m actually looking at moving . Once I get my situation settled out I ’ m looking at moving to the Phoenix area or Las Vegas , simply because the housing is so much cheaper there .
• But at the end of the day , I think we can all agree , everyone is worthy of having safe and affordable housing without having to worry about how they ’ re going to use their paycheck to make their rent and no one is more worthy just because they have a different job title or make more money .
• I do feel on a day to day basis that are walking around on eggshells just about every single day of my life and I don ’ t like to feel that way . [ But ] specifically in my neighborhood , I feel very included but outside of my
Unity Council Report neighborhood , I do feel like I ’ m walking on eggshells , and I ’ m sort of waiting for something to occur .
• So we see a disproportionate number of folks seeking homeless services that are some kind of minority . And so I think when you compare the population of Arlington , you see a disparity in that you see more people that are homeless that are African American , than people that are white people than are Asian even people than are Latino .
• I would have [ other ] white people say to me , like when they were talking about that school when they found out I worked there , they would talk about it as a rough school . And I think that that ’ s code for black and I think that it just shows that there is an undercurrent of prejudice in the white community very much still alive and present . That black spaces or spaces that are more populated with black people must somehow be more rough or less safe which I think is not true .
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