This study will examine public housing in general and the William Nickerson, Jr. Gardens housing project in Watts, California in particular.
The study will specifically attempt to determine the successes and/or failures of the policy and practice of public housing in the United States and in Nickerson Gardens in particular.
The study will first examine public housing in terms of its origins on a national level why it was originated, when it was originated, how it was originated, and the functions it was originated to perform. This section will cover the social, economic and political contexts which gave rise to the origination of public housing. Relevant federal agencies and their role in public housing will be covered as well.
The heart of the paper, after this general and historical introductory section, will be the coverage of the conditions existing since the beginnings of the Nickerson Gardens, with an emphasis, unfortunately, on the crime which has plagued the project since its inception and which continues to reduce the residents to a state of fear and victimization. Policy considerations to correct the situation in Nickerson Gardens and in other housing projects will be examined. Comparison of problems in various housing projects will also be covered.
In the conclusion of the study we will examine public housing in retrospect, emphasizing analysis of the success of such housing. In addition, the conclusion will provide a look at the future of public housing in the United States.
Origins and History of Public Housing
Although the Housing Act of 1937 (Fried 71) is generally accepted as the date of the first federal involvement in public housing in the country, Mayer notes that the United States Congress first became interested in housing problems as early as 1892. In that year the Commissioner of Labor was granted what now appears the paltry figure of $20,000 for a study of slums in 15 urban areas i...