The correlation between poverty and being a person of color in Lincoln is a growing concern as the city becomes more diverse, community leaders say.
Of the 29 census tracts in Lincoln with an above-average minority population, for example, 24 have a higher-than-average poverty rate. In the 41 tracts with a below-average minority population, only eight have a higher than-average poverty rate.
And Lincoln is only expected to grow more diverse — the city's minority population is forecast to grow from 20.5% in 2020 to 35.3% in 2050.
This is just one of the correlations laid out in the fourth iteration of the Community Health Endowment of Lincoln's Place Matters maps unveiled Thursday, which draw connections between where people live and factors such as life expectancy, access to housing, health care, diversity and age.
"I love watching Lincoln get better and I think the maps are our way of making that happen," said Lori Seibel, president and CEO of the Community Health Endowment, which invests in health-related causes and programs in Lincoln.
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The Place Matters maps debuted in 2015 and are released biennially, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department and other city departments.
They're a way for community organizations and public officials to drive policy and target investments in places that need them, said Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird.
"Our work as a city, as a community, is to make sure every census tract and every neighborhood and every person has access to opportunities that help improve their health and their lives and their families' future," she said. "That's what this is really about. ... It's not about a map. It's about the people on the map."
The data for the 2021 maps draw from 2019 data and tell a story about a growing city.
While poverty in Lincoln dropped by 2.5% from 2017 to 2019, poverty as a whole is up in a big-picture context — in 1980, 8.6% of city residents lived in poverty, while 12.5% lived in poverty in 2019, and that was before the impacts of COVID-19.
The maps showing those in poverty and neighborhoods with high minority populations — roughly west and north Lincoln — are practically the same.
The data also spell out connections between poverty and access to medical care — such as prenatal and doctor visits — and life expectancy. For example, in tracts where poverty is greater than 30%, the average life expectancy is 72 years, while in areas where poverty is less than 5% it's 82 years.
Poverty is, in its essence, the cause of causes, Seibel said.
"It's what causes so many other things to go wrong," she said. "And it is a key factor in determining if we will be a healthier community."
New this year are maps that lay out trends based on housing and Lincoln's elderly population.
The average number of single-family rental homes — a marker of housing instability — grew from 19.3% in 2010 to 22.4%, while there is a growing trend toward more rental properties in neighborhoods built in the mid-20th century.
One other interesting data point: The neighborhood bounded by Antelope Valley Parkway and 27th Street and Y and Q streets saw the biggest increase in single-family rental properties in that span from 11% to 38%.
Lincoln's elderly population, which was primarily concentrated in central and east-central Lincoln in 1980, has grown to nearly all parts of the city — a notable consideration given that those ages 75 and older are expected to outnumber those 5 and younger locally for the first time by 2025, Seibel said.
City officials have used the Place Matters maps to make tangible improvements across the city, the mayor said. Officials, for example, used the data to improve the quality and livability of the city's oldest homes, including through a five-year project to address lead paint contamination and ventilation issues in older neighborhoods.
Maps that outline youth fitness levels and access to fresh food have also guided the city's work, including urban agriculture projects and an allocation of budget funds toward improving parks and sidewalks and affordable housing, Gaylor Baird said.
And Place Matters also helped drive the development of the Schroder Park Wellness Campus near Folsom and A streets, where this year's maps were unveiled Thursday morning.
"These reports, they're not static," Gaylor Baird said. "They're springboards for action."Â