Public Radio for the Piedmont and High Country
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Greensboro Report Finds Continuing Barriers To Affordable Housing

DAVID FORD/WFDD

A new report from Greensboro's Neighborhood Development Department details the barriers that people face when trying to find affordable housing.

While the report focused on housing, its 100-plus pages also provide a snapshot of Greensboro's current population trends, including historic issues such as segregation which is on the decline. 

There's also a suggestion that the city should look at how a “not in my backyard” attitude among residents may limit choices.   

Some of the same housing impediments existed when an assessment was presented five years ago. There continues to be a lack of units available, and some of what is out there is of poor quality.

Another ongoing problem: zoning ordinances, some of which were written to address other problems but ended up limiting affordable housing options.

The study's authors recommend that the city re-examine its zoning standards and requirements with an eye toward breaking some of those barriers.

The report was designed to help guide Greensboro officials on policy over the next five years.

Paul Garber is a Winston-Salem native and an award-winning reporter who began his journalism career with an internship at The High Point Enterprise in 1993. He has previously worked at The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The News and Record of Greensboro and the Winston-Salem Journal, where he was the newspaper's first full-time multimedia reporter. He won the statewide Media and the Law award in 2000 and has also been recognized for his business, investigative and multimedia reporting. Paul earned a BA from Wake Forest University and has a Master's of Liberal Arts degree from Johns Hopkins University and a Master's of Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He lives in Lewisville.

Support quality journalism, like the story above,
with your gift right now.

Donate