rob breymaier, oprhc: next 40 years presentation

8/14/2019 Rob Breymaier, OPRHC: Next 40 Years Presentation

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Oak Park Regional Housing CenterOak Park Regional Housing Center

Expanding Options, Ensuring Demand, Encouraging CommunityExpanding Options, Ensuring Demand, Encouraging Community

MISSION

The Mission of the Oak Park

Regional Housing Center is

to achieve meaningful and

lasting racial diversity

throughout Oak Park,

Berwyn, and the region.


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0%

11%

18%

22%

19%20% 19% 19%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

1970 1980 1990 2000Afric

anAmericanPercentageofPopulation

Oak Park RegionHousing Center Opens, 1972



When the Housing Center was founded (1972), Oak Park was nearly all

white and did not reflect the regional average.


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Regional Segregation

and Opportunity

in the Chicago Region

2000

Racial and Ethnic

segregation provides

the basic structure ofinequality.


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White not Latino

66.2%

Black not Latino

22.4%

Asian not Latino

4.3%

Latino

4.0%

Other or Multiple Race

not Latino

3.1%



Fair Housing & Diversity in Oak Park Today

Oak Park is not perfect but it is an open and

inclusive community both in reality and in

perception.

For most races Oak Park mirrors regional

averages.

Oak Park is consistently cited as a model for

diverse communities.


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Diversity and Integration Measurements

for Selected Oak Park Exchange Congress Communities (2000)

19 52 49 17 23 26 41 45 56 62

31% 32%

82%

22%

54%

41%

21%

45%

34% 35%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

South

Orange, NJ

Maplewood,

NJ

Shaker Hts,

OH

Bellwood, IL Park Forest,

IL

Oak Park, IL South

Holland, IL

Oak Park, MI Matteson, IL Evanston, IL

W

hite:BlackDissimilarityIndex

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

%BlacknotLatino


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Direct Services

Promote Oak Park as an open and inclusive

community

Encourage affirmative moves to prospective

tenants in Oak Park through apartment locatorservices

Work with property owners and managers to

ensure that they comply with fair housing law

Work with property owners and managers to

ensure that their units attractive and desirable


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Promotion

Advertising

Public events

Brochures

Networking

Housing industry

Non-profitsInstitutions


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Encouragement

Counseling for renting

Affirmative Marketing / Busting Myths and

Stereotypes

Personalizing


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Supply Side Interaction

Building designs and unit features

Management techniques

Screening techniques

Resident managers


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Advocacy and Policy

Advocate for diverse involvement in institutionsand civic life

Provide regional leadership and advocacy

Conduct research and provide anecdotal

evidence to inform, improve, and verify our

efficacy

Advocate for affirmative public policies at the

state and national level

Advocate to prioritize affirmative furthering in

philanthropic communities


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Challenges

Non-African Americans are reluctant to make

affirmative moves

Communities that surround Oak Park and

Berwyn are highly segregated (either wholly orinternally)

Misconceptions that we have solved the

problem in Oak Park (Housing is Dynamic!)

The program is labor intensive and can be

expensive


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Going Forward

This program is transferable to many other

communities

More effective in communities with decent

rental housing stock

Can be modified for other housing and

demographic mixes

Scalable to reduce costs (Berwyn example)As more communities engage diversity

increases in stability

rob breymaier, oprhc: next 40 years presentation

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