Legacy of Redlining Today

In the 1930’s, Green Island was one of the neighborhoods that was subject to redlining, resulting in residents being denied access to mortgage loans and other forms of credit. In 1936, the federal government established The Home Owners Land Corporation (HOLC) that performed evaluations of neighborhoods in Worcester and other cities. The HOLC categorized districts by best, still desirable, declining, and hazardous (indicated by the red region). As a result of Green Island’s racial and socioeconomic makeup,  the neighborhood was considered less “desirable” during assessments. The HOLC committee described this region to be inhabited by, “French industrial workers,” “a Polish settlement,” and noted that “the majority [were] industrial workers and laborers of the poorer class” (The Worcester Regional Research Bureau). During the period of redlining, any potential banks or investors looking to put money into the area or offer loans were likely turned away by the community’s hazardous label. After this precedent was set, many people and investors viewed Green Island as a low income area that was hopeless and had very little investment potential.

In 1937, A year after the establishment of HOLC, Roosevelt established the Federal Housing Administration to assist people in purchasing homes by guaranteeing bank mortgages up to 80% of purchase prices with 20-year terms. The FHA conducted its own appraisals of property to guarantee the loans were not hazardous and it even included a “whites-only” stipulation as the FHA believed integrated neighborhoods, or even white neighborhoods close to African American ones, were too hazardous (The Worcester Business Journal). This established a pattern and initiated a cycle of intergenerational wealth that is still affecting residents today. When owners were unable to secure loans for maintenance or improvements on their houses, the quality and worth of the house depreciated. This prevented owners from accumulating wealth to pass down to their families through their primary asset: their home. African Americans and other minority groups were barred from obtaining reasonable loans to purchase homes, which would have enabled them to accumulate wealth through augmented equity.

The impacts of redlining continued to tear apart these communities when Worcester’s Interstate-290 divided and destroyed red and yellow areas defined on the 1936 redlining map. These areas were home to many immigrant and ethnic populations and due to these areas being established as poor in the early 1900’s, they were completely disregarded during the creation of the interstate. Lorraine Laurie’s text “The Island That Became A Neighborhood” illustrates the extensive changes that occurred in the Green Island area after the construction of Interstate-290. She writes that, “despite the lobbying, the Expressway plowed through the east section of the neighborhood” (Laurie 46). The development of the interstate completely displaced individuals and ripped apart these communities and they have consistently been vulnerable to inequalities, with a lack of say in what occurs to them. She also writes that the construction of I-290, “would mean taking down houses, destroying landmarks, forcing businesses to relocate, and shutting off streets” (Laurie 46). Families, restaurant owners, shop clerks and many more were forced to uproot their homes and places of work without much choice to make room for the highway. The neighborhood that they called home was completely unrecognizable after so many changes were made to accommodate for the interstate, and this relocation only increased their vulnerability to issues like poverty and lack of investment in the area. I-290 truly “cut the heart out” (Laurie 48) of Worcester.

The legacy of redlining continues almost a century since redlining occurred. Today residents in formerly redlined areas can see higher poverty rates and poorer environmental conditions (The Worcester Regional Research Bureau). The Worcester Regional Research Bureau, who conducts research regarding public policy in the Worcester area, outlines the current statistics of areas compared to their redlining status from the 1930s in their website “Static Income, Rising Costs”. The Green Island area (15) now has a poverty rate between 25-30%, while areas that the redlining maps deemed desirable in 1936 today have poverty rates under 15%. Additionally, area 15 has one of the highest social vulnerability index ratings (The Worcester Regional Research Bureau). According to the CDC, social vulnerability is the risk of harm to communities from external pressure on health, which can be reduced to lessen human suffering and economic damage. Due to the predetermined labels created by the HOLC, these communities were unable to recover from the negative stereotypes from the past, thus causing these communities to be burdened by heath and natural disasters and high poverty levels today.

The Worcester Business Journal recently published an article regarding the legacy of redlining today. It states that, “Without investment, it struggles to keep up and the cycle of devaluation continues until homeowners are all either pushed out, leave or pass away and their family sells the property to speculative buyers more interested in creating wealth, not through property value but by collecting rent” (Worcester Business Journal). Affordable housing developer Scott Hayman says it is happening now. He expressed that currently, since Green Island is an area of historic low wealth, it has become increasingly a problem for more wealthy investors or groups to take over properties like triple-deckers for a low cost and renovate them to collect high rent prices. He shares that, “There is a ton of money being made in housing. We have made housing a big money business”. This may drive residents of Green Island out of the area, as properties may no longer be affordable, thus furthering the cycle of generational poverty and expanding the gap between the poor and wealthy. 

Scott Hayman states: “The most critical level to work on is State/Federal levels. They need to quadruple funding for affordable housing” (Hayman). He is referring to the Federal Housing Administration, which is a government organization that can assist in affordable housing. Hayman shares that the Federal Housing Administration used to subsidize home ownership for new homeowners, and he would like these policies to return. The G.I. Bill provided subsidies to many Americans and Immigrant-American families, allowing them to buy their first home and build up wealth to pass onto their children. To address the consequences of redlining, initiatives such as Main South Community Development Corp. and Worcester Common Ground, Inc., which was established in 1988 to assist people in locating affordable housing, have been implemented. Currently, Worcester Common Ground purchases property, renovates it and either rents it or sells it to a first-time home buyer who may not be able to afford a home in the city (The Worcester Business Journal). These initiatives not only provide people and families with an opportunity to purchase a home and acquire wealth through equity, but also supplies the city with more affordable housing for those who are looking for work. Recently, the city of Worcester met to discuss affordable housing and passed an inclusionary zoning ordinance. Advocates proposed that affordable housing should be allocated to individuals at 60% of the city’s median income, however 80% was decided. These new initiatives have begun to help communities previously impacted by redlining and start to make long term solutions to make housing affordable. “Hard work, determination, ethnic pride, and love of god and neighborhood–- that’s what made the ‘island’ a neighborhood. It is the secret of the past. It will be the key to the future” (Laurie 55).