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SOUTH CAROLINA OPPORTUNITY GROWTH PROJECT
The South Carolina Opportunity Growth Project works with African
American community leaders in South Carolina to identify the impact
of land use and growth planning policies on access to opportunities
for African American communities. The project introduces a race
lens to the policy discussion on growth planning, increases the
African American community’s capacity to participate effectively
in these discussions and develops tools to support development
of new policy options.
African American South Carolinians have a median household income 46.7% lower than White South Carolinians. African American
South Carolinians also have higher rates of unemployment (10.9%)
than White South Carolinians (4%). Yet, African Americans in South
Carolina have very high rates of land and homeownership (61%) – much
higher than the national average of African American land ownership
(46.3%). Therefore, despite their relative poverty, African Americans
have a potential wealth-building asset. Local, county and state
policies are failing to increase wealth-building opportunities
in African American communities and may be preventing them.
South Carolina ’s population, like much of the South, is
booming. The population of South Carolina has grown rapidly—15.1%
between 1990 and 2000. Developers are building new housing and
shopping centers on once vacant land outside of cities. However,
this kind of development far outstrips the need based on the population
growth. This growth, often called “sprawl,” is not
sustainable for local governments, communities or for the environment.
But at its heart, sprawl is about race and segregation. Luxury
housing development generally sprawls away from cities, which tend
to have high concentrations of people of color. African American
communities have been denied the infrastructure they need to attract
investment, like jobs, credit, housing and transportation. In cities,
African Americans are often pushed out to make room for luxury
housing. Efforts to promote growth and control land consumption
have a significant impact on African American communities and the
overall health of metropolitan areas.
The South Carolina Opportunity Growth Project engages in the
following activities:
- applied research to identify where and how land use planning
policies may be creating barriers to opportunities for African
American communities;
- meetings and other convenings to share research and raise
policy issues with community members, legislators, and others;
- collaborations with community leaders to develop policy reform
strategies;
- facilitation of dialogue between potential allies and interested parties to identify opportunities for alliances and other forms of collaboration .
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