PROVIDING EQUITABLE ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND HOW IT TRANSLATES TO OUR COMMUNITY’S WELL-BEING I N PA RT N E R S H I P W I T H
CITY OF DURHAM | COUNTY OF DURHAM | DUKE UNIVERSITY | DUKE UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM | DURHAM CAN | DURHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS DURHAM CONGREGATIONS IN ACTION | GREATER DURHAM CHAMBER OF COMMERCE | INTERDENOMINATIONAL MINISTERIAL ALLIANCE LINCOLN COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER | PROJECT ACCESS OF DURHAM COUNTY | PARTNERSHIP FOR A HEALTHY DURHAM TRIANGLE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION | THE INSTITUTE
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as leaks, rust, mold and lack of heating are all issues that residents in low-income housing recently faced, says Atinuke Diver, the executive director of Durham CAN (Congregations, Associations and Neighborhoods). People are living in “conditions that many of us would find not only intolerable and inhumane, but also a threat to health,” Atinuke says, which is why demanding accountability around chronic repair issues in low-income housing communities is one of Durham CAN’s priorities. “Severe housing problems” as established by the Healthy North Carolina Task Force 2030, such as poor maintenance, are a social determinant of health. Housing falls under the umbrella of physical environmental factors, which account for 10% of the impact on health outcomes – length and quality of life – according to the Task Force’s January 2020 report. “Homes have always been an essential component of wellness,” says John Killeen of DataWorks NC, “for individuals and communities as well.” “Housing costs, housing quality or no housing have a dramatic and direct outcome on people’s health,” says Peter Skillern, executive director of Reinvestment Partners, an agency active in housing and community development. Reinvestment Partners currently provides
F I N D A C O M P L E T E L I S T O F H E A LT H Y D U R H A M P A R T N E R S AT
safe housing for the homeless and those transitioning out of rehabilitation programs through the Hotel to Home project. It provides 32 rooms at the Carolina Duke Inn, where people can recuperate on their way to permanent housing – just one example in the very broad scope of solutions to folks finding affordable places to live. “Within that [issue of] affordable housing is a variety of different needs,” Peter says, such as transitional housing or specific health needs of one population. Evictions are another issue that Durham CAN seeks to address. “There were folks like Durham Human Relations Commission and Legal Aid [of North Carolina] who had already identified that Durham had an
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