Issues

Homeownership and Affordable Housing

People need help to purchase affordable homes in the neighborhoods where they grew up. We can prevent the adverse impacts of gentrification and stabilize communities by promoting homeownership. Lillian recommends

A definition or definitions of ‘affordable’, as it relates to housing (for-sale), which shall inform future policymaking;

A housing study which includes current and projected future housing market conditions, an inventory of existing affordable housing, and a projected inventory of affordable housing through at least 2030;

An analysis and evaluation of current policies, programs, and initiatives related to affordable housing production and/or preservation;

Recommendations for the creation of new policies, programs, or initiatives and/or the expansion of existing ones to increase the supply of affordable housing for the purpose of homeownership in the City of Greenville commensurate with the current and projected future need.

Convene a series of public meetings throughout the community to receive testimony about housing affordability and the needs and desires of residents and to share their findings.

Economic Empowerment

Building small businesses within threatened neighborhoods provides investment and job opportunities. Here are some recommended policy actions:

Stimulus Funding should be fairly-allocated, and include disbursements to MBE firms that have not received PPP loans.
City affirmative action policies should be evaluated, both with regard to procurement and hiring practices. If necessary, recommendations should be made for the creation of new guidelines, programs, or initiatives, and/or those existing should be expanded, to increase the number of minority firms with which the City partners, as well as to increase the number of minorities the City employs.
Job training recruitment programs, operated by both public and community-based organizations, can be established in facility outreach centers to best-serve those re-entering society.

Criminal Justice Reform

Everyone should be treated with dignity, and former offenders should be offered participation in Second Chance programs that allow them to turn their lives around.

Invest in Real Diversion: Community-based mental health treatment and housing, provided through a special Diversion court, to stop mentally-ill homeless people from cycling through jails, the courts, and the streets.

There has been a recent rise in the use of Diversion programs, such as mental health courts or drug courts, across the country. These courts work in collaboration with mental health and substance abuse treatment providers, to help individuals who have mental health or substance abuse problems.
Independent Racial Bias Audits
Ban The Box laws prohibit employers in the City of Greenville from asking applicants about criminal history on initial job applications. Some Ban the Box initiatives require employers to wait until after an interview has been conducted, or after they have made a conditional offer of employment, before asking questions regarding criminal history.
Re-Entry Job Training and Placement Programs
Yearly, holistic training on diversity, equity, and inclusion, for public safety personnel

ONE GREENVILLE

“This Agenda, presented by Greenville District 2 City Councilwoman Lillian Brock Flemming, details non-partisan information focused on neighbors and neighborhoods. Community issues are not Republican or Democrat; they impact all of Greenville, those Seen, and Unseen.”

–Kwadjo Campbell, Campaign Manager.