Top 10 Lists We Do Not Want to Ever Be On Again
By: Mark Poloncarz
Date: September 1, 2006
Last week's Buffalo Old Home Week showed that there is much to celebrate about Buffalo and Erie County. However, this week the U.S. Census Bureau released some telling statistics about the economic make-up of our fair city that is very troubling.
In 2005, the City of Buffalo made two top ten lists that we should hope we never make again: lowest median income per household and percentage of citizens living below the poverty level. As reported by the Census Bureau in its 2005 American Community Survey Report, the City of Buffalo is ranked third from the bottom for Lowest Median Household Income among Large Cities and sixth worst for percentage of citizens living at or below the poverty level.
According to the report, the estimated median annual income for a household in Buffalo in 2005 is $27,311, compared to the national median of $46,242 and New York State median of $49,480. The only two large American cities that are worse than Buffalo are Miami ($25,211) and Cleveland ($24,105). While the city rated very low, at least Erie County fared much better. The county's median was estimated to be $41,967 per household.
It should not be surprising based on those numbers that Buffalo then ranks as having a large portion of its population living below the poverty level. According to the report, 26.9% of all citizens live below the poverty level, compared to 13.3% for the nation, 13.8% for New York and 13.2% for Erie County. This percentage has slightly increased from 2000 when 26.6% of city residents were living below the poverty level, compared to 12.4% for the nation and 12.2% for the county - meaning both the nation's and Erie County's percentage of individuals residing below the poverty level has increased by about a percentage point in five years.
If you think about it the number is frightening: almost thirty percent of all Buffalonians live below the poverty level. While Erie County fares much better and compares to the national average, just about three out of every ten people you see in Buffalo at any time may be living below the poverty level. When you read these numbers it is easy to understand why police officials have been saying that the recent rash of violence in the city is related to drug and gang activity - activity that itself is related to the poverty level.
Also, the level of poverty in the City of Buffalo impacts not just Buffalo but all of Erie County. For those who may be unaware, the vast majority of county programs in terms of dollars are spent on social service programs that assist those living in poverty (Medicaid, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, etc.). Thus the level of poverty in the inner city impacts us all in Erie County.
I am proud to live in Buffalo and I do believe that our great city is seeing a rebirth. However, in my opinion it is disgusting to know that in today's day and age roughly 30% of my fellow neighbors are living in poverty. This is a statistic that we should be embarssed about and must address. If we do not, our city's rebirth will be stunted by a force we can, if not eliminate, at least reduce: the number of Buffalonians living in abject poverty. It is a goal that not just Buffalonians but all Erie County residents should work together as a community to achieve, so that in next year's report we no longer make these top ten lists of shame.
Mark Poloncarz, a founding member of the WNY Coalition for Progress, is comptroller of Erie County, New York.
© Mark C. Poloncarz, 2006.
The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent those of the WNY Coalition for Progress.
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