{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"StreetSmart 15: Homes Before Highways","description":"In StreetSmart 15, Damien Newton spoke with Yesenia Perez of the Greenlining Institute about the connection between freeway expansion and California\u2019s housing crisis. Perez discussed research behind her recent story at Streetsblog, which found that more than 800 homes have been demolished in the past six years to make way for highway projects, highlighting how transportation investments can reduce housing supply and destabilize communities. The conversation explored how new state data, made available through SB 695, is helping quantify these impacts for the first time. Perez said the Greenlining Institute\u2019s \u201cHomes Before Highways\u201d project aims to make that data more accessible, allowing residents and policymakers to better understand where displacement is occurring. Newton and Perez also discussed how these impacts are often overlooked in housing debates, which tend to focus on new construction rather than homes lost to infrastructure projects. Perez argued that clearer data is helping shift the conversation toward real community impacts. Looking ahead, Perez emphasized the need for policies that prioritize avoiding displacement, including alternatives to highway widening and requirements to replace lost housing. Both agreed that aligning transportation spending with California\u2019s housing and climate goals will be critical moving forward. A lovingly edited transcript of our discussion can be found below. And last, catch up on old episodes or subscribe: Streetsblog CAL, Apple, Spotify, Libsyn.   Damien Newton: As I said in the intro, I\u2019m here with Yesenia Perez from the Greenlining Institute, and we\u2019re going to be talking about displacement issues and the Institute\u2019s \u201cHomes Before Highways\u201d program. If her name sounds familiar, that\u2019s a good thing\u2014it might be because back in December she wrote a piece for Streetsblog California, which we\u2019ll link to in the text accompanying this podcast, called \u201cDisplacement in Dollars Down the Drain: The Data Behind California\u2019s Highway Expansion Crisis.\u201d I should note she didn\u2019t originally write it for Streetsblog California\u2014she wrote it for the Greenlining Institute, and they were kind enough to let us cross-post it. So, thank you for being here today, Yesenia. Let\u2019s start by talking a little bit about that article\u2014what it covered, since it was based on a lot of research\u2014and then we can get into the Homes Before Highways program you\u2019ve been working on. Yesenia Perez: Yeah, happy to start with an overview of the article. The core argument I made back in December is that freeway expansion isn\u2019t just a transportation issue\u2014it\u2019s also a housing issue. It\u2019s one of the most overlooked drivers of California\u2019s housing crisis. Based on data released in the past year or so, we know that over 800 homes were destroyed to make way for highway expansion projects in just the last six years. Across the state, highway projects have divided communities for decades. A good example is the proposed 101\/92 connector in San Mateo, where around 33 homes\u2014and dozens of families\u2014could be displaced in a region already struggling with some of the highest housing costs in the country. The core point is that if California is serious about solving its housing crisis, it has to consider how transportation investments affect housing supply and community stability\u2014even when projects don\u2019t ultimately get built, like the 710. The state needs to account for the long-term impacts of investing in freeway expansion. Damien Newton: Yeah, and for anyone not familiar with the L.A. area, there was a decades-long plan to connect the 710 and the 210 freeways. People called it the \u201cunfinished freeway.\u201d Metro and Caltrans finally abandoned it around 2018 after years of opposition. But as part of that project, they had purchased a bunch of homes back in the \u201970s. Many of those homes are still vacant or in poor condition. Some were occupied during the pandemic, and now there are ongoing issues around how to treat those residents fairly. It\u2019s been a real mess for the northwest San Gabriel Valley\u2014and it\u2019s still being dealt with today. Yesenia Perez: Yeah, and one more thing to highlight is the cost. Even after the project was canceled, Caltrans has spent something like $17 million just maintaining and guarding those empty properties\u2014homes that could be housing people. Damien Newton: Right, and that\u2019s something we\u2019ve covered a lot. We\u2019ve interviewed residents in those homes multiple times\u2014usually once a year on our SGV Connect podcast. Joe Linton, our Streetsblog L.A. editor, has also done extensive reporting on freeway widenings and their housing impacts. It\u2019s something we talk about often, but it still gets lost in broader conversations\u2014even among journalists. There\u2019s a section in your article called \u201cDisplacement by Design,\u201d and it really stood out to me. Legislation like SB 695 has helped quantify that impact, and the numbers are still shocking. Between 2018 and 2023 alone, we\u2019re talking about hundreds of homes and businesses\u2014most in L.A. County. So how has your work evolved since that article? Yesenia Perez: SB 695 was really foundational for our work. It required Caltrans to report on highway expansion impacts\u2014lane miles, emissions, and displacement. For decades, we didn\u2019t have a statewide picture of how many homes and businesses were being demolished. The data shows that in the last three decades alone, there have been around 10,000 displacements in California tied to highway projects. But it also shows the limits of transparency\u2014it only captures a narrow window and doesn\u2019t reflect the full history or future impacts. That\u2019s why we created the Homes Before Highways site\u2014to make this data visible and accessible. Between 2018 and 2024, more than 850 homes and businesses were demolished, alongside about 760 miles of highway lanes added. To put that in perspective, that\u2019s longer than the distance from Oregon to Mexico. Our map helps people visualize where these impacts are happening in their own communities. Damien Newton: And I think there\u2019s real value in that, especially since so much of the housing conversation is focused on building new housing\u2014particularly near transit. The discussion about housing lost to freeway expansion often gets overlooked. When you talk to policymakers or advocates, do you feel like this data is changing the conversation? Yesenia Perez: I do think it is. When people can actually see where displacement is happening, the conversation shifts from abstract policy to real community impacts. You start to see how families are pushed farther from job centers when housing is demolished, and the connection between transportation and housing becomes clear. You can\u2019t solve a housing crisis while demolishing homes for freeway expansion. The next step is for policymakers to ask: now that we have this data, what are we going to do with it? Damien Newton: And I think a lot of people assume this kind of displacement only happened decades ago\u2014not that it\u2019s still happening today. Once people realize it is, there\u2019s usually a strong reaction. So what do you see as the solution? Should we stop highway expansions altogether, or rethink how we approach them? Yesenia Perez: There\u2019s no single solution\u2014it will take a range of actions. California has already made commitments through its climate action plans, including acknowledging these harms and calling for policies to reduce displacement. But we haven\u2019t seen those policies fully implemented yet. One key recommendation is to change how projects are evaluated. For example, requiring alternatives that avoid displacement\u2014like converting existing lanes into bus or express lanes instead of widening highways. And if displacement can\u2019t be avoided, there should be requirements to replace lost housing, ideally with affordable housing in the same community, so there\u2019s no net loss. Damien Newton: That makes sense. We\u2019re getting close to the end, so I\u2019ll ask for any closing thoughts. And just a reminder to listeners: links to everything we discussed will be available with the podcast at cal.streetsblog.org. Yesenia Perez: One thing I want to highlight is that while these conversations can feel discouraging, there\u2019s also a lot of positive work happening. In the latest State Transportation Improvement Program cycle, over 300 safety and active transportation projects applied for funding\u2014but most didn\u2019t receive it, even though they scored highly. Meanwhile, regions continue proposing highway widening projects that cost more and can worsen congestion. So it\u2019s important to recognize that communities want these safer, more sustainable projects\u2014they\u2019re ready to go. The question is whether the state will prioritize them. At the end of the day, this is about aligning transportation investments with California\u2019s stated goals\u2014on housing affordability, climate action, and equity. The state has made strong commitments. Now it\u2019s about following through and making sure investments support those goals instead of undermining them. Damien Newton: Great. Thanks so much for your time today. This is clearly an issue we\u2019ll keep covering\u2014freeway expansion has been a major Streetsblog theme for years. But as you pointed out, there are also positive developments worth highlighting. Yesenia Perez: Thank you so much. ","author_name":"StreetSmart","author_url":"https:\/\/sites.libsyn.com\/StreetSmart","html":"