HUD Interactive Map Tool

May 11, 2011 11:26 AM

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has launched a new interactive mapping tool for Community Planning and Development agencies, interested agency partners, and the public.

The tool shows the locations of several kinds of federally-subsidized housing, including HUD Multifamily units, Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties, and Public Housing units. It also maps Neighborhood Stabilization Plan (NSP) target areas, Housing Choice (commonly called Section 8) voucher concentration, and other indicators of community health (income level, housing vacancy rate, etc), mostly on a Census tract level.

HUD is requesting feedback on this interactive mapping tool and other measures, using an online discussion forum called UserVoice. The forum is accessible to HUD employees and the general public, and allows participants to share, discuss, and vote on ideas for HUD to consider as they advance their FY 2010-2015 Strategic Plan. This particular tool is aimed at helping local jurisdictions develop Consolidated Plans that are more useful for planning and decision-making. Local jurisdictions—cities and counties—that receive HUD funding are required to develop a Consolidated Plan outlining housing needs and priority actions every five years, and these plans influence how local governments spend their federal funding dollars.

HUD is considering adding additional data to this map tool, and says that the map data will be updated regularly—though there will be some lag time in rapidly-changing data, such as voucher concentration.

posted by Kpele (12 comments total)

This sort of makes me want to pump my fist in the air and say 'YES!'
posted by carsonb at 11:40 AM on May 11, 2011

This is super cool! The easy access to demographic data is stunning to me and being able to take in concentrations of subsidized housing at a glance is neat.

I have to say though, the data only as reliable as HUD's data. I looked at a particular small city I've worked in a lot over the past three years, and so know the public housing, LIHTC, and NSP landscape, and the map missed a number of my projects.
posted by Measured Out my Life in Coffeespoons at 11:49 AM on May 11, 2011

Here's some feedback. Why can't I click on an NSP area, LIHTC property, etc, and get a pop-up window about that property. The "Identify" tool doesn't seem to do this.
posted by ofthestrait at 11:53 AM on May 11, 2011

Whatever tool these guys are using it always gives the same error.
posted by DU at 11:54 AM on May 11, 2011

I can get (some, I suspect not totally accurate) pop-up info using the identify tool, ofthestrait. I agree it's buggy and has issues, but I am personally pretty *squee* that HUD is doing this at all.
posted by Kpele at 11:58 AM on May 11, 2011

This is a great map on its own...but if it can't find any Section 8 housing in Central Falls, RI, (you know, the town that fired all its high school teachers?) then I am dubious. I'll have to take a closer look, I think.
posted by wenestvedt at 12:14 PM on May 11, 2011

It's sweet for sure, but the data seems out of date, or inaccurate, but I too, am impressed HUD is even in the same century and think that now that they've built this the real data should come, and it should be used to hunt down and destroy with extreme prejudice every scummy developer, mortgage company, criminal bank in the nation and/or make them pay the taxes the owe their respective cities and to make good on any and all promises for affordable housing. Also see: Housing derivatives and lingering economic disaster.


Hmmm..perhaps that was a little extreme above eh, yeah?

NAHHH!!! I want the whole unholy triangle of Real Estate and High Finance and Wall Street to offer up blood sacrifices, I want them here and I want them now.
posted by Skygazer at 12:22 PM on May 11, 2011

Mmmmm, maps.
posted by desjardins at 1:03 PM on May 11, 2011

Wow, while I'm not really doing any analysis or using the data too much, this seems to be very quick and snappy. Even zooming in and out of the map seems quicker than Google Maps.

If this is powered by ESRI, then I still don't get why ArcGIS is still so slow and clunky and awful! Can't they apply some of these techniques to their desktop versions -- I understand that ArcMap et al are powerful tools, but simple things like zooming in and out and selecting things should be as fast as this.
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 1:20 PM on May 11, 2011

Interesting, The Prescott Block shows up as a project (green- Project Based Section 8) but that's a vacant lot that hasn't been turned into housing yet. (and I'd be shocked if any new Section 8 projects were built.)
posted by vespabelle at 2:54 PM on May 11, 2011

Sigh... and sadly I look at this data set and I think to my self... Can I use this data for eeeeeeeeevil?
posted by Nanukthedog at 6:05 PM on May 11, 2011

Very very cool.
posted by salvia at 11:50 PM on May 11, 2011