Housing, Environment, and Well-being

The Florida Resilient Cities Jacksonville project investigates the interconnections between housing conditions, environmental quality, and community well-being in the neighborhoods surrounding McCoys and Hogans creeks. Located within Jacksonville’s urban core, these communities face overlapping challenges, including flooding, environmental degradation, infrastructure barriers, housing pressures, and uneven reinvestment. 

Using the Housing, Environment, and Well-being (HEW) framework, the project addresses resilience beyond restoring specific conditions in the natural and built environment. It examines the interdependencies of housing conditions, water and air quality, urban heat, flooding, tree canopy, and neighborhood change, and how these shape residents’ everyday experiences and well-being. 

The research combines regional data analysis, place-based spatial analysis, and community knowledge. A Socio-Ecological Systems model identifies relationships among demographic, housing, environmental, and well-being indicators, while the Transect System translates these broader patterns into neighborhood-scale conditions across McCoys and Hogans creeks. This integration provides a foundation for more equitable planning, watershed restoration, and neighborhood investment measures.