Gregory D. Squires

Unequal partnerships : the political economy of urban redevelopment in postwar America

Unequal Partnerships explores urban development in American cities since World War II. Gregory D. Squires and other contributors examine what has long been a highly inequitable and destructive process of urban development. They look at the political and social assumptions and interests shaping redevelopment, the social and economic costs of development for the vast majority of urban residents, and alternative approaches emerging. The book begins with an overview of the ideological forces that have shaped urban economic development in the United States from the urban renewal days of the 1950s and 1960s through the celebration of public-private partnerships in the 1980s. Subsequent chapters examine specific cities in light of the consequences of development initiatives. These cities include those in declining rustbelt regions that are struggling with the consequences of deindustrialization (Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, and Milwaukee), as well as growing cities in the sunbelt (Louisville, New Orleans, Houston, and Sacramento). The book concludes with a discussion of promising policy alternatives. The contributors are David W. Bartelt, Larry Bennett, Scott Cummings, Peter Dreier, Norman I. Fainstein, Susan S. Fainstein, Joe R. Feagin, John I. Gilderbloom, Gregory A. Guagnano, W. Dennis Keating, C. Theodore Koebel, Norman Krumholz, Marc V. Levine, John T. Metzger, Jack Norman, Cath Posehn, Nestor P. Rodriguez, Alberta Sbragia, Derek Shearer, Michael Peter Smith, Gregory D. Squires, June Manning Thomas, Robert K. Whelan, and J. Allen Whitt. Gregory D. Squires is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. He is coauthor of Chicago: Race, Class, and the Response to Urban Decline.

From redlining to reinvestment : community responses to urban disinvestment

Foreword: Community Reinvestment is Good for Cities, Good For Lenders Edward McDonald 1. Community Reinvestment: An Emerging Social Movement Gregory D. Squires 2. The Struggle for Community Investment in Boston, 1989-1991 James T. Campen 3. The Community Reinvestment Act and Neighborhood Revitalization in Pittsburgh John T. Metzger 4. Confrontation, Negotiation, and Collaboration: Detroits Multibillion- Dollar Deal David Everett 5. Reinvestments in Chicago Neighborhoods: A Twenty-Year Struggle Jean Pogge 6. Milwaukee: A Tale of Three Cities Michael L. Glabere 7. Reluctant Response to Community Pressure in Atlanta Larry E. Keating, Lynn M. Brazen, and Stan F. Fitterman 8. California: Lessons from Statewide Advocacy, Local Government, and Private Industry Initiatives David Paul Rosen 9. The Legacy, the Promise, and the Unfinished Agenda Calvin Bradford and Gale Cincotta About the Contributors

Racial Profiling, Insurance Style: Insurance Redlining and the Uneven Development of Metropolitan Areas

ABSTRACT: Racial profiling has emerged as a highly contentious practice in a range of social settings. This article examines the role of racial profiling in the property insurance industry and how such practices, grounded in negative racial stereotyping, have contributed to racial segregation and uneven metropolitan development. From a review of industry underwriting and marketing materials, court documents, and research by government agencies, industry and community groups, and academics, it is clear that race has long affected and continues to affect the policies and practices of this industry. Due to limitations in publicly available data, it is difficult to assess precisely the extent to which race shapes industry practices. Research and public policy initiatives are explored that can ameliorate the data problems, increase access to insurance, and foster more equitable community development.

Insurance Redlining, Agency Location, and the Process of Urban Disinvestment:

Insurance redlining exacerbates economic decline and impedes revitalization of urban neighborhoods throughout the United States. One significant barrier to the availability of insurance is the movement of sales representatives from inner-city to suburban locations. In examining the changing pattern of insurance agency locations within the Milwaukee metropolitan area, the authors find that racial composition of neighborhood is associated with agency location even after the effects of family income, condition of housing, and number of dwellings are controlled. Policy recommendations are offered to mitigate the practice and effects of insurance redlining and to stimulate reinvestment in urban communities.

Metropolitan Segregation and the Subprime Lending Crisis

Unsustainable high-cost lending was a major contributor to one of the worst financial crises in U.S. history. While several studies examine individual- and community-level predictors of high-cost lending, little research has tested for the possible causal effect of racial segregation. Using two-stage least squares statistical models, we find evidence that even after controlling for percentage minority, poverty, unemployment, low credit scores, home value escalation, and bank branch accessibility, black/white segregation is a significant predictor of the proportion of subprime loans originated in the largest 200 U.S. metropolitan areas. We also find that increased black education levels are important protective factors, while greater shares of mortgages originated by independent mortgage companies increase the risk for subprime lending. We find no evidence for an effect of Hispanic/white segregation on subprime lending. This research suggests that policy initiatives aimed at limiting high-cost lending should address the context of black/white segregation, education, and financial reform.

Color and Money: Politics and Prospects for Community Reinvestment in Urban America

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Experiencing Residential Segregation: A Contemporary Study of Washington, D.C.

Explicit considerations of race and unlawful racial discrimination persist as critical factors in the continuing segregation of urban housing markets. On the basis of a telephone survey of Washington, D.C. area households, the authors find that current black households were almost twice as likely as white households to not get their first choice when they moved into their current homes, more than one-fourth of black householders report that they or someone they know experienced discrimination in their efforts to obtain housing or housing finance within the past three years, and whites are more than four times as likely as blacks to believe that equal opportunity exists in the current housing market. These relationships persist after controlling on several socioeconomic characteristics (income, education, housing tenure) of households. Several policy options are recommended for ameliorating racial segregation in urban housing markets.

Neighborhoods, Race, and Recidivism: The Community Reoffending Nexus and its Implications for African Americans

In this study we explore the impact of neighborhoods on criminals and of criminals on neighborhoods with respect to a current pressing problem — prisoner reentry. First, we review the key issues surrounding prisoner reentry in a “get tough on crime” era and describe the multiple challenges ex-offenders face upon release. We pay particular attention to the group affected most by these challenges — young Black males. Second, we examine trends in reoffending and link rising recidivism rates to current criminal justice policies and practices. Third, we determine how recidivism may be linked to the neighborhoods where prisoners return. Using data on a sample of ex-offenders in Multnomah County, Oregon in conjunction with Census data, we show how one critical community characteristic — neighborhood socioeconomic status — accounts for variation in the reoffending behavior of exprisoners that is not explained by their individual-level characteristics. Fourth, we consider whether the linkage between residence and recidivism may be conditioned by race. And finally, we discuss the policy implications by stressing the need to focus on communities as one part of a larger plan for reducing recidivism.

Fringe Banking in Milwaukee: The Rise of Check-Cashing Businesses and the Emergence of a Two-Tiered Banking System

Check-cashing businesses constitute a growing industry, particularly in low-income and non-white neighborhoods. This case study of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, finds that check-cashing businesses are concentrated in the central city while conventional banks are concentrated in outlying city and suburban communities. These services are growing, despite relatively high fees, primarily because of their convenient hours and locations for central-city residents, exclusionary behavior by conventional institutions, and financial problems of area households. More effective marketing by conventional banks and more aggressive enforcement of community reinvestment requirements by regulatory agencies would blunt development of two-tiered banking and facilitate revitalization of distressed communities.

Insurance Redlining and the Transformation of an Urban Metropolis

Financial institutions play a critical role in determining the viability of urban communities. As is the case with the geographic distribution of mortgage and business loans, insurance redlining constitutes a major force in fueling the uneven development of metropolitan areas. This article examines the racial effects of insurance underwriting activity in a large midwestern metropolitan area. In analyzing the distribution of homeowners insurance policies, a strong bias in favor of suburban and white neighborhoods and against inner-city and minority communities was found. These patterns reflect both discriminatory nonrational economic behavior on the part of insurers and the logic of rational market processes. Policy recommendations are offered to address the problems inner-city neighborhoods confront in efforts to secure adequate insurance and other financial resources.