Availability and affordability of housing on the West Side is
playing a major role in the increasing refugee population in Erie County.
Refugee Resettlement agencies such as the International Institute have created a link between available housing and the population increase of Erie County indicated in the 2014 Census.
Refugee Resettlement agencies such as the International Institute have created a link between available housing and the population increase of Erie County indicated in the 2014 Census.
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| Iraqi refugee Nadeen is a new W.S. resident |
A report released by the United States Census Bureau in 2014
showed that the population of Erie County in April 2014 was 922,835, an
increase of 952,000 from 2010. According to that same report 12,196 people from
other countries moved to Erie County between 2010 and 2014, exceeding the 8,394
residents who moved away.
Mary Sullivan, self-sufficiency coordinator at the
International Institute who is responsible for refugee family budgeting and
financial education, points to the fact that the West Side is full of places
for refugees seeking a place to live.
“I think a huge part of what is happening in Erie County and
the West Side is attributed to housing availability,” Sullivan said. “Not only
are there buildings that are vacant for refugees to come and live in but the
prices on these properties are low enough for them to afford.”
The influx of refugees into Erie County has not only given the
county its first positive population increase since the 1960s but it is acting as
a resuscitation device for the community itself.
“Grant Street has come such a long way in the past few years,” Sullivan
said. “They are coming into these areas
that were once abandoned and giving them life again.” By Ryan Esguerra, Amber Rinard and Dallas Taylor
