In Panama City, Fla., and Paradise, Calif., money poured in after natural disasters, squeezing some residents out. The dynamic is repeating across the U.S.
By Arian Campo-Flores, Cameron McWhirter and Paul Overberg of The WSJ. Excerpts:
"Government aid and insurance payouts deliver an infusion of investment. Rebuilt homes become sturdier. Property values rise, infrastructure is upgraded and some neighborhoods get makeovers.
“A natural disaster can be a galvanization moment for a community,” said Allan Branch, the mayor of Panama City.
Yet the upheaval pushes others out. Poor residents have a tougher time navigating bureaucratic procedures for disaster aid and weathering job losses. Renters often get evicted from damaged properties and face spiraling rents as the supply of units shrinks. Low-income homeowners frequently struggle to pay for repairs that must comply with stricter building codes and to buy sufficient insurance coverage.
“Social inequalities are exacerbated after a disaster,” said Kathryn McConnell, a sociology professor at the University of British Columbia who has studied how destructive wildfires affect migration.
One study of the Paradise Camp Fire earlier this year found that the more than $1 billion of federal aid aimed at recovery “facilitated displacement and gentrification by enabling socially advantaged previous and new residents to return and rebuild.”"
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