Hamilton read a prepared statement and answered questions from reporters. He said he plans to fight poverty and homelessness with federal aid dollars and community outreach.
“Poverty is holding Bloomington back, and it’s hurting our economy,” Hamilton said. “It’s time we get serious about combating poverty by creating more opportunities for people with low incomes to succeed and move ahead.”
In his statement, Hamilton said that if elected, he plans to make “source of income” a protected class, meaning those whose primary source of income is partially made up of government aid — whether it be through a housing voucher, social security or unemployment insurance — cannot be discriminated against in housing.
Part of Hamilton’s plan is working closely with nonprofits such as ROC USA, which helps low-income individuals buy mobile homes and works with local businesses that can hire disadvantaged residents.
“Then a second (part) is really increasing the collaboration with our city and outside nonprofits, other nonprofits, including ways to promote home ownership,” ?Hamilton said.
The last part of Hamilton’s plan detailed his vision for IU Health to help provide healthcare access to lower-income residents through continued commitment by IU Health to sign people up under the Affordable Care Act and make clinics easily accessible.
Poverty is a major problem in Bloomington relative to the rest of the country. Statistics from a variety of organizations, including the United States Census Bureau, routinely rank Bloomington as one of the poorest cities in America with a population of more than 65,000.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the percentage of persons below the poverty line in Bloomington was 39.2 percent, compared with the state of Indiana at 15.4 percent. In addition, median household income in Bloomington from 2009 to 2013 was $27,396, compared to $48,248 in the state overall.
Statistics are skewed by the amount of students who live and work in Bloomington, many of whom rely on their parents for financial assistance or are part-time employees. But even factoring students into the equation, Hamilton said poverty in Bloomington is a major issue.
Hamilton also said he plans to change language in the city Unified Development Ordinance in order to provide more affordable housing for residents.
“Well, I would like to see language that commits us to more affordable housing ... we ought to pursue an annual revenue stream for affordable housing, which we don’t have, and I would like to see the UDO reflect that commitment as well as the concept of long term or permanent ?affordability.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average rent per month in Bloomington is $782 compared to $730 for the state. The Indianapolis Star reported Bloomington has the highest average rent out of any city in Indiana, ahead of Columbus and Indianapolis.
“As a community, Bloomington is committed to equality and justice — that means economic justice too,” Hamilton said. “We can be the generation that makes our city one that truly works for ?everyone.”
