The 15 US Cities Where Poor Neighborhoods Are Expanding The Fastest

Business Insider ^ | 08/04/2014 | ALLAN SMITH AND ERIN FUCHS

[SeekAndFind]

Poverty is stuck at record levels in America, and it's spreading in neighborhoods that are already blighted and impoverished, according to a new report from the Brookings Institution.

So-called concentrated poverty spurs high crime rates and can worsen health, schools, and housing conditions, according to Brookings. While poverty was once viewed as an urban problem, more and more of America's poor live in the suburbs.

The Brookings report analyzes the poverty levels in metro areas and their distressed neighborhoods, examining the change between 2000 and the period of 2008-2012, which includes an average from a five-year Census estimate and shows the effect of the recession.

Brookings looked at the change in poverty levels in neighborhoods described as distressed, where at least 40% of the population lives under the poverty line, and high-poverty, where at least 20% of the population is impoverished.

To get an idea of which U.S. cities have the fastest-growing rates of concentrated poverty, we ranked metro areas based on the change in poor population in tracts with poverty rates 20% or higher. We also included the change in poor population for the entire metro area. (Metro areas include both cities and their suburban outskirts.)

For the year 2013, the Census set the poverty level at $12,119 for a single person under the age of 65 and $24,028 for a family of four.

[Bringbackthedraft]

Cape Coal was plagued by mismanaged local government, and then the housing bubble made it even worst. The local residents call it the Peoples Republic of Cape Coral.

[Leaning Right]

Boise, Idaho is #1? Who would have thought?

[TChad]

The list:

Here are the answers to the obvious question about that list:

Political Affiliation of Mayors of the 15 US Cities Where Poor Neighborhoods Are Expanding The Fastest

15. Salt Lake City, UT: Ralph Becker (D)
14. Atlanta, GA: Kasim Reed (D)
13. Denver, CO: Michael Hancock (D)
12. Orlando, FL: Buddy Dyer (D)
11. Cape Coral, FL: Marni Sawicki, (D)
10. Greenville, SC: Knox H. White (R)
9. Winston-Salem, NC: Allen Joines (D)
8. Scranton, PA: William L. Courtright (D)
7. Grand Rapids, MI: George Heartwell (?)
(I found Heartwell listed as "nonpartisan" and "Independent", but a FR post describes him as "such a flaming liberal you could roast marshmallows off him.") 6. Greensboro, NC: Nancy B. Vaughan (D)
5. Portland, OR: Sam Adams (D)
4. Charlotte, NC: Daniel G. Clodfelter (D) who was appointed to relace Patrick Cannon (D) who was arrested on corruption charges.
3. Raleigh, NC Nancy McFarlane (?)
"McFarlane is a political independent (called "Unaffiliated" in North Carolina) but ran with the endorsement of the local Democratic Party."
2. Colorado Springs, CO: Steve Bach (R)
1. Boise, ID: David H. Bieter (D)

[hinckley buzzard]

No, you are right, this is just meaningless filler.

[Jack Hammer]

Any residents who don’t have a color TV, a Fridge, a stove/oven, a DVD player, running water, food, six or more kids?

I doubt it.

[wardaddy]

ironically she looks quite coal friendly

[Victoria_R]

Boise, ID is #1?

Here’s what they won’t tell you for fear of being accused as racism or whatever.

1. Boise includes Nampa and Caldwell which have seen increasing amounts of Hispanic gangs and other illegal aliens. One county commissioner once billed Mexico for the additional cost of jailing illegal aliens who had been convicted of various felonies.

2. The area economy is almost all based on services or farming. What few middle-class manufacturing jobs that exist are being moved overseas to places like Korea despite the state having some of the lowest wage rates in the country.

3. People who have been laid off from one of the few decent paying jobs resort to fighting over the low-paying part-time service jobs. I know numerous people who are working two or three separate part-time jobs to survive.

4. Contrary to popular belief, teachers are one of the few groups of people in the area that make a very good salary while their students have some of the poorest test scores in the country.

5. Government cronyism on a local level. Nampa just got rid of a tax-and-spent mayor. Unfortunately, he used his connections to run for and get a county commissioner position. Now the rest of the county can join Nampa as having the highest property taxes in the state.

There was an local article about a year ago calling the area’s “service based economy” a preview of the rest of the country’s economy. Lots of people fighting over a few crappy paying jobs, decreasing middle-class jobs, and a few good paying jobs which go to the boss’s kids.

[Mister Da]

BI seems to have a liberal bent.

In praising Chicago as one of the 11 world cities the most opportunity (a following article),
http://www.naturalnews.com/046289_California_extreme_drought_human_migration.html#ixzz39LFcqXy8 the article fails to mention the high violent crime rate, instead touting its “quality of life”. Yeah, that's SOME opportunity.

[Nea Wood]

That’s a rotten shame. I was thinking about Boise for retirement. It seems there’s nowhere safe and decent you can go anymore unless you’re extremely wealthy.

[Squantos]

Great googly moogly ...... Dats fugly WD !!!

[Squantos]

Damn ....looks like North Carolina is a dumping ground for Socialist Rat voters. Just like the Rats that are being sent to Texas as fiuture voters for the Democrats.....

[Smokin' Joe]

Another unmentionable is that Denver and the Front Range towns have been overrun with illegal aliens. Spanish is the other language there, and heard very often. Add in making marijuana legal, and what could possibly go wrong?

Besides all that, I wonder how much the Section 8 exporting the poor into better neighborhoods has contributed to the decline.

[nascarnation]

Head to the rural north.

When SHTF, and it becomes a lot of hard work to stay warm, the Entitlement Army will be streaming south.