Exhibit Closing – The Cost of Home

Through our exhibit, The Cost of Home, we’ve examined the opportunities and limitations of affordable housing models in New Orleans and the nation. As we reach the end, we’re looking at other parallel endings and thinking about what the future holds. The Industrial Development Board of New Orleans provided $29 million in public dollars for tax-exempt bond financing to create 53 (20%) affordable and low-income apartments at American Can. Those homes were guaranteed for 15 years, and time is up. Over the next 5 years, 1,200 affordable housing units in New Orleans will sunset and can become market rate. By 2031, that number will rise to 6,100. What can New Orleans do in the midst of an affordable housing crisis to protect these tenants and expand housing opportunity?

Our panel:
American Can tenants

Cashauna Hill, Executive Director of Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center

Shana griffin, Activist scholar

Hannah Adams, Attorney for Southeast Louisiana Legal Services