Municipalities around the world have increasingly used inclusionary housing programs to address their housing shortages. This book problematizes those programs in London and New York City by offering an empirical, research-based perspective on the socio-spatial dimensions of inclusionary housing approaches in both cities. The aim of those programs is to produce affordable housing and foster greater socio-economic inclusion by mandating or incentivizing private developers to include affordable housing units within their market-rate residential developments.
The starting point of this book is the so-called “poor door” practice in London and New York City, which results in mixed-income developments with separate entrances for “affordable housing” and wealthier market-rate residents. Focusing on this “poor door” practice allowed for a critical look at the housing program behind it. By exploring the relationship between inclusionary housing, new-build gentrification, and austerity urbanism, this book highlights the complexity of the planning process and the ambivalences and interdependencies of the actors involved. Thereby, it provides evidence that the provision of affordable housing or social mixing through this program has only limited success and, above all, that it promotes – in a sense through the “back door” – the very gentrification and displacement mechanisms it is supposed to counteract.
This book will be of interest to researchers and students of housing studies, planning, and urban sociology, as well as planners and policymakers who are interested in the consequences of their own housing programs.
By:
Yuca Meubrink
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 234mm,
Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781032742731
ISBN 10: 1032742739
Series: Explorations in Housing Studies
Pages: 208
Publication Date: 10 September 2024
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Primary
,
Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
List of Figures List of Maps List of Tables List of Boxes Acknowledgements Acronyms Introduction Rethinking Inclusionary Housing in an Age of Austerity A Tale of Two Doors: The “Poor Door” Phenomenon Benevolent Planning Policy or“Recipe” for Gentrification?: Recent Approaches to Inclusionary Housing in London and New York City Researching Inclusionary Housing: Literature Review and Conceptual Framework Approaching Inclusionary Housing: Methods and National and Local Context Summary of the Chapters Chapter 1 Building the Way Out of the Crisis? The Evolution of Inclusionary Housing Policies in London and New York City under Conditions of Austerity First Phases of Inclusionary Housing Second Phase of Inclusionary Housing Third Phase of Inclusionary Housing Continuity Despite Change Chapter 2 Creating Value for Profit Rather Than “Affordable Housing”: Neighborhood Regeneration Under the Pretext of Inclusionary Housing Urban Regeneration in the Context of Urban Entrepreneurialism and Financialization of Housing in London and New York City Creating Value Out of Thin Air? The State as Developer: The Redevelopment of Central Hill Estate in London The State as Enabler: Rezoning Inwood in New York City Comparing New York City and London Chapter 3 Reclaiming What, Where and for Whom? How the Provision of a “Public Good” Contributes to New-Build Gentrification The Role of Local Governments in the Uneven Spatial Distribution of Inclusionary Housing Developments Cases Studied in Each City Negotiating Inclusionary Housing in Affluent Neighborhoods Negotiating Inclusionary Housing in Low-Income Neighborhoods Neighborhood Inequalities Reinforced Chapter 4 Vertical Segregation by Design: How Inclusionary Housing Developments Contribute to a Vertical Gentrification Movement Theoretical Considerations of Vertical Segregation by Design Vertical Segregation by Design in London and New York City Vertical Gentrification of Mixed-Income Housing Interview Chapter 5 Limited Accessibility to and Affordability of “Affordable Housing” as a Form of Gentrification Accessible for Whom? Affordable for Whom? Gentrification of “Affordable Housing” Interviews Conclusion Inclusionary Housing as Part of the Problem, Not the Solution to the Housing Affordability Crises AfterwordThe COVID-19 Pandemic as a Transformative Moment of Inclusionary Housing? The End of Section 106 in England: A New Fast-Track Route for Developers or a New Way to Deliver Affordable Housing? A Glimpse of Hope in New York City? Concluding Remarks Index
Yuca Meubrink currently works as academic coordinator of the interdisciplinary research group “Sustainable construction – for saving resources and climate protection” of Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. She previously worked as a research and teaching assistant in the study program Metropolitan Culture at the HafenCity University Hamburg, Germany from where she also received her Ph.D. She has been a visiting scholar at City University of New York and at Birkbeck, University of London. She is also a member of the editorial collective, sub\urban. zeitschrift für kritische stadtforschung – a peer-reviewed, open access journal. Yuca Meubrink studied North American Studies, Cultural and Social Anthropology and Journalism in Berlin, Germany.
Reviews for Inclusionary Housing and Urban Inequality in London and New York City: Gentrification Through the Back Door
“Inclusionary Housing and Urban Inequality in London and New York City, provides an exemplary comparative critical analysis of how inclusionary housing policies and practices provide a ‘back door’ to gentrification rather than an entree to more truly affordable housing provision.” Paul Watt, Visiting Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science. “On the basis of fine-tuned fieldwork and careful policy analysis Yuca Meubrink’s book alerts us to the insidious effects of supposedly win/win inclusionary housing policy. An extremely timely and important analysis, her book should be required reading for all urban planners and anyone following or trying to change contemporary housing policy.” Ida Susser, Ph.D. Distinguished Professor, Graduate Center/City University of New York. “Inclusionary housing is widely regarded as an effective tool for solving the housing crisis by providing affordable housing while also fostering social mix. This careful empirical study comparing new-build mixed income developments in NYC and London demonstrates expertly how and why the planning, design and ‘real life’ outcomes not only fall far short of the promised targets, but even accelerate gentrification and displacement.” Margit Mayer, Senior Fellow at the Center for Metropolitan Studies, Germany.
