case-gary.html

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layout: case_studies
name: case-gary
title: Fighting Blight and Abandonment in Gary, Indiana | LocalData
primary: Fighting blight in Gary
secondary: Chicago's former Mayor, the City of Gary, and the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy fight blight with data.
linkTitle: Fighting blight and abandonment in Gary, Indiana
class: gary
---
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          <h2>Fighting blight with data</h2>
          <p>Like many smaller American communities, Gary, Indiana experienced
          a drastic population decline that started in the 1960s.
          Today, the City has thousands of abandoned or near-abandoned buildings, and it
          can cost $15,000 for a single demolition.</p>

          <p>To make a difference, the City needed hard data on the scope of the problem.
          Unfortunately, <strong>the best data available was out of date</strong> and said nothing
          about building condition.</p>

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            <span class="number">67</span>
            volunteers
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          <p>The Gary-Harris Initiative (GHI) was formed to help the city think
          through some of its most challenging problems.
          Gary Mayor
          <strong>Karen Freeman-Wilson</strong>, the City of Chicago's former Mayor <strong>Richard M. Daley</strong>, and the <strong>University of Chicago</strong>'s Harris School of
          Public Policy joined forces &mdash; and they turned to LocalData
          for tools to help get the job done.</p>

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            <span class="number">11,651</span>
            properties surveyed
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            <span class="number">2,000</span>
           acres covered
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          <h2>Results</h2>

          <p>LocalData gave the team tools to quickly visualize and map the data, and entirely eliminated transcription. Volunteers and <strong>organizers could see results in real time</strong>, which kept teams coordinated, reduced errors, and increased efficency.</p>

          <p><strong>With just 67 volunteers, the team surveyed over 11,651 properties</strong>
          covering 2,000 acres across the city. Surveyors covered nearly <strong>40 parcels per hour</strong> .
          The LocalData dashboard helped organizers undestand both the spatial concentration of vacancy and
          abandonment, target areas for demolition or deconstruction, and see where
          the city should concentrate efforts to board up distressed
          housing.</p>


          <p>You can read more more about the larger planning project <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-02-17/business/ct-biz-0217-daley-gary-20130217_1_gary-mayor-karen-freeman-wilson-mayor-daley-richard-m-daley">in the Chicago Tribune</a>.
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