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COVID-19 RESOURCES AND INFORMATION: See the Atlanta Fed's list of publications, information, and resources; listen to our Pandemic Response webinar series.

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Feb 10, 2021

Financial Resilience Challenges during the Pandemic

The history of discriminatory policies leaves many Black and Hispanic people less resilient in the face of the economic shock caused by the pandemic. Partners Update examines this history's connections to household financial resilience.

Oct 22, 2020

Inclusive and Resilient Recovery: Virtual Roundtable on Inclusive and Equitable Community Development Recovery Strategies for Practitioners - October 22, 2020

In the webinar, Atlanta Fed staff discussed their research and demonstrated the Bank's housing-related data tools. City officials from Birmingham and New Orleans spoke about local programs created in response to the COVID-19 recession and how they are working toward an inclusive and equitable recovery in their communities.

Oct 07, 2020

Expansion of New Law in Southeast May Stave Off Black Land Loss

Heirs’ property can result when a property owner dies without a legally recognized estate plan in place. This form of ownership disproportionately affects lower-wealth African Americans. Partners Update examines some recent legislation on heirs’ property in the Southeast.

Dec 23, 2019

Anchor Institution Strategies in the Southeast: Working with Hospitals and Universities to Support Inclusive Growth

Anchor institutions such as universities and hospitals can help drive inclusive economic development in their communities. The author examines efforts to launch anchor institution strategies in New Orleans, Atlanta, and the Miami area.

Nov 20, 2019

Report on Heirs' Property Highlights Challenges and Interventions for Communities

Heirs' property is land inherited by the descendants of a previous owner, often one who did not leave a will. Partners Update discusses a comprehensive report on the issues facing these property owners, including the inability to transfer wealth to future generations.

Nov 16, 2018

Event: Fair Housing: A Look Back and Forward at Racial Equity in Atlanta (and the Southeast)

The event recognized the 50th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act, discussed its legacy, and explored solutions to racial equity challenges that persist. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Community and Economic Development group, Georgia ACT, Georgia State University's Urban Studies Institute, National Fair Housing Alliance, Metro Fair Housing Services Inc., and Atlanta Legal Aid Society cohosted the event in Atlanta.

Apr 12, 2018

Event: Growing Regional Food System Opportunity: Capital and Beyond

The event examined health, equity, and the economic impact of community food production. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Community and Economic Development group, Hope Credit Union Enterprise Corporation, Self-Help Credit Union, and Food Well Alliance cohosted the event in Atlanta.

Dec 06, 2017

Bridging the Health-Community Development Divide

Community development and health professionals often work with the same residents in separate silos, but that is beginning to change. Partners Update previews a paper on emerging health-community development partnerships in the Southeast.

Dec 04, 2017

Can Community Development Improve Health? Emerging Opportunities for Collaboration between the Health and Community Development Sectors

Health and community development professionals are learning to collaborate to address the social determinants of health. The author investigates promising partnerships in the Southeast in this first of a two-part series.

Nov 06, 2017

Event: Advancing Health and Community Development Partnerships

The event explored how health and community development professionals are learning to collaborate. Participants represented a variety of sectors, including health care, public health, community development, housing, government, and research. The Build Healthy Places Network, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, and the Georgia Health Policy Center cohosted the event, which was held in Atlanta during the national American Public Health Association Conference.

Sep 22, 2017

Event: How to Increase the Production of Mixed-Income Development

This event provided information from a recent Federal Reserve paper on reducing barriers to mixed-income housing development, engaged in a discussion on what strategies work best for the Nashville region and how to better align resources to meet local needs, and advanced the "Housing Nashville" report initiative. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and the Nashville Mayor's Office hosted the event.

Jun 15, 2017

Event: Heirs' Property in the South: Fostering Stable Ownership to Prevent Land Loss and Abandonment

Heirs' property is formed when a landowner dies without a will or with a simple will that divides real estate assets equally among the descendants. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and the U.S. Forest Service's Southern Research Station hosted a gathering on heirs' property research and outreach in the southern United States, bringing together researchers, policy professionals, and practitioners. The meeting focused on challenges, opportunities, and other timely topics affecting heirs' property.

Mar 14, 2017

Event: Catalyzing Efforts to Improve the Health and Well-Being of All Georgians

The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and Georgia State University Health Policy Center cohosted a meeting on the social determinants of health in Georgia and concrete, actionable steps to address them. The meeting brought together a cross-sectoral group of leaders representing health care, community development, government, academia, and philanthropy.

Feb 06, 2017

Exploring Atlanta's Community Development Landscape with Governor Lael Brainard

Fed Governor Brainard visited Atlanta neighborhoods with community and economic development and supervision and regulation team members. They met with community members and organizations to discuss local efforts, reports Partners Update.

Dec 21, 2016

Corporate Landlords, Institutional Investors, and Displacement: Eviction Rates in Single-Family Rentals

Institutional investors purchased thousands of homes across the country to rent them after the real estate and financial crisis. The authors examine how the rise of the large corporate landlord in the single-family rental market affected housing stability in Atlanta.

Nov 28, 2016

Exploring Economic Trends in the Southeast

U.S. household incomes are climbing, but have southeastern states kept up with the national trend? This Partners Update article probes recent census data on household incomes to find out.

Aug 24, 2016

Concentrated Poverty in the Southeast: A Tale of Two Regions

How have patterns of concentrated poverty changed in the Southeast since the Great Recession? Partners Update previews a student paper on the topic.

Aug 24, 2016

Exploring Concentrated Poverty in the Southeast

Concentrated poverty—the proportion of the poor living in high-poverty neighborhoods—is a serious problem. A recent Community and Economic Development student paper found U.S. concentrated poverty increased significantly since the year 2000. The author examines whether concentrated poverty in the Southeast has followed a similar trajectory.

Jul 05, 2016

Research Symposium on Gentrification and Neighborhood Change

The Philadelphia Fed event looked at the causes and consequences of gentrification and approaches to moving toward equitable development. This Partners Update article summarizes the symposium's research and discussions.

Mar 17, 2016

Data Tools for Dynamic Communities

Mapping and data visualization tools can have significant applications in the community and economic development field. This Partners Update article examines two tools that help evaluate housing and transportation costs.

Mar 10, 2016

Negative Equity in the Sixth Federal Reserve District

Some cities have not recovered from the subprime and foreclosure crises, and negative equity—when a house is worth less than outstanding mortgage debt—remains a persistent problem. The author analyzes the characteristics of Southeast neighborhoods that continue to have negative equity.

Jan 04, 2016

Offsetting Gentrification and Fostering Inclusive Transit-Oriented Development

The Atlanta Fed cohosted a recent symposium to examine strategies that would promote equitable transit-oriented development without gentrifying a neighborhood and displacing residents. Partners Update takes you inside the discussions.

Dec 21, 2015

From Blight to Beautification: Jacksonville's Clean, Green Initiative

The city has taken a fresh approach to address neighborhood blight, according to Partners Update. This final article in our blight reduction series looks at Jacksonville's community cleanup and beautification initiative.

Dec 15, 2015

RISE Up: Birmingham Battles Blight

Through its RISE initiative—which stands for Remove blight, Increase value, Strengthen neighborhoods, and Empower residents—Birmingham is using its land bank authority to help clear tax delinquent properties and encourage investment. This second Partners Update article in a series explores that effort.

Dec 09, 2015

Community Prosecution: A Strategy to Tackle Blight with Communities

Community prosecution is one method to mitigate crime in a community through a proactive and decentralized approach to problem solving. This first Partners Update article in a series looks at how the city of Dallas is using community prosecution to reduce blight in target neighborhoods.

Dec 01, 2015

Blight Remediation in the Southeast: Local Approaches to Design and Implementation

Blight—or the proliferation of vacant, abandoned, or poorly maintained properties—is a critical issue that cities must address. The authors analyze New Orleans and Macon, which are committed to blight remediation and could become models for other cities to emulate.

Nov 16, 2015

Event: Community Forum on Healthy Food Access

A discussion about local initiatives to improve healthy food access in the Atlanta area and innovative cross-sector partnerships to address food insecurity, create jobs, and revitalize communities. The Atlanta Fed, Bank of America Foundation, and Reinvestment Fund cohosted the event.

Nov 05, 2015

Citizen Engagement in Community Development

Some municipalities are using community development initiatives that capitalize on the strengths of the community and its residents to improve living conditions. But what motivates residents to engage with their local government in the first place? This Partners Update article investigates findings from an Atlanta example.

Mar 23, 2015

The Role of Place-Based Initiatives in Community Development

As the name says, these initiatives are designed to concentrate investments in a specific location, and some couple infrastructure and human capital investments. This Partners Update article summarizes place-based initiatives, describes challenges for communities incorporating such a strategy, and discusses best practices.

Mar 12, 2015

Health and Community Development: Some Perspectives and Resources

In terms of health, the Southeast tends to trail behind other parts of the country, though efforts are under way to address these persistent challenges. This Partners Update article looks at resources generated in our region and by our Fed colleagues connecting health and community development.

Jan 29, 2015

Resilience in Planning: A Review of Comprehensive Plans in Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina

Gulf Coast communities that were hard hit by Hurricane Katrina have implemented various plans to rebuild their infrastructure. In a new paper, an Atlanta Fed analyst looks at four Mississippi communities’ comprehensive plans and analyzes and compares them.

Dec 02, 2013

Event: Rural Poverty Research Symposium

Economists, sociologists, and other researchers discussed papers and presentations on subjects ranging from human capital and education, racial and demographic aspects of rural poverty, where food stamp issuance increased most during the Great Recession, and current poverty measurements' shortcomings. The Atlanta Fed and U.S. Department of Agriculture cohosted the event.

Sep 25, 2013

Social Ties, Space, and Resilience: Literature Review of Community Resilience to Disasters and Constituent Social and Built Environment Factors

Communities have faced more frequent and severe natural disasters in recent decades. In a new paper, the author examines the literature to understand one particular aspect of resilience: how the built environment contributes to greater resilience by supporting and encouraging strong social networks.

Aug 26, 2013

Solving the Revitalization Puzzle? Putting the Pieces Together

Some economic development efforts have expanded beyond traditional strategies to address a more comprehensive set of issues, including neighborhood revitalization. Shirley Franklin, CEO of Purpose Built Communities and former Atlanta mayor, discusses an approach that encompasses many stakeholders and yields beneficial community results.

Jun 24, 2013

In the Neighborhood: Where Economic and Community Development Meet

Disinvested areas of cities must often combine community and economic development efforts to achieve the goals of both. Rick Sauer and Lynn Martin Haskin of the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations discuss how local institutions can support economic development at the neighborhood level.

Oct 24, 2012

Florida Leads Southeast in Population Growth

10/24/2012 - The Southeast population grew by 13 percent from 2000 to 2010, with urban centers garnering the lion's share. What do the changing demographics portend for the region's economy? An Atlanta Fed economist offers his perspective.

Jul 18, 2012

From Textiles to Turnaround: A Tale of Two Cities

Many cities have experienced the contraction of a once-dominant industry. The Richmond Fed's Kim Zeuli examines two North Carolina cities—Concord and Eden—that lost their textile employment base and learned to adapt to changing conditions.

Apr 11, 2012

Shrinking Cities and Right Sizing in the Southeast

Some Southeastern cities have seen population declines in the last few decades. Communities facing these conditions may turn to strategies focused on "right sizing" or "smart decline," which emphasize improving the quality of life for current residents rather than attracting new ones.

Feb 29, 2012

Harnessing Many Financing Sources to Benefit a Community

Two community development finance professionals discuss their strategies to support the expansion of a community health care center in a low-income neighborhood in New Orleans.

Feb 22, 2012

Event: The Great Immigration Turnaround: New Facts and Old Rhetoric

Take everything you know about immigration...and throw it out the window. Sounds drastic, but University of Southern California Professor Dowell Myers argues that most of our commonly held assumptions about immigration are wrong, and he'll tell you why.

Feb 03, 2012

Crowdsourcing for the Common Good: A Community Development Approach

Crowdsourcing—engaging web users in a particular project—may prove to be a valuable tool for decision making among government and nonprofit entities. A crowdsourcing technique that promotes engagement and creative problem solving can empower citizens and maximize benefits to a community.

Oct 20, 2011

Land Banks: One Tool for Housing Market Recovery

Governor Elizabeth Duke discussed "lessons learned" from the financial crisis during a Federal Reserve Board forum on September 1. Duke also identified obstacles to the housing market recovery and explored possible solutions. One option, land banking, has a good track record in the Southeast.

Aug 31, 2011

Harnessing the Power of Social Networks to Rebuild Communities

Following hurricanes Katrina and Rita, strong community ties played a critical role in the rebuilding process. A new book with content by Atlanta Fed staff explores the important role of social networks in the rebuilding of two Gulf Coast communities.

Jun 09, 2011

The Economics of Green Building

Small improvements in the "sustainability" of buildings can have large effects on greenhouse gas emissions and on energy efficiency in the economy. In today's commercial real estate market, does it also make business sense to invest in the energy efficiency or "sustainability" of buildings?

Dec 10, 2010

Healthy Businesses, Healthy Communities: Identifying and Responding to Local Small Business Challenges

Small businesses are recognized as job creation engines as well as contributors to the economic vibrancy of the neighborhoods where they are located. Dr. Lisa Servon, former dean of Milano the New School for Management and Urban Policy, discusses the effects of the economic downturn on small businesses and local communities and approaches to promoting economic development in a time of major financial constraints and challenges.

Nov 02, 2010

On the Rebound: How Resurgent Cities Generate Jobs and Investment

Older cities once focused on manufacturing have faced declining fortunes for some time. Even with the economic recession adding new pressures to economic development strategies, some of these cities have managed to reinvent themselves into vibrant job centers. Dr. Yolanda Kodrzycki of the New England Policy Center at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston discusses the lessons these resurgent cities have for other communities.

Sep 22, 2010

Three in One: Growing Jobs, Developing a Workforce, and Stabilizing Neighborhoods

Current economic conditions have inspired practitioners and policymakers to think more deliberately about the overlap between economic and community development. The combination of fewer local businesses, fewer jobs for residents, and increased foreclosure rates has hastened holistic, neighborhood-based approaches. Tony Cipollone, vice president for the Civic Sites and Initiatives of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, discusses how neighborhood-based economic and community development projects are working to create more vital and vibrant neighborhoods.