The Community Assessment Project
the full report
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conducting the assessment
From May to August 2008, CEHI data collectors canvassed over 17,000 tax parcels in Durham using a standardized visual assessment of building exteriors. Sidewalks and nuisance variables like graffiti or litter were recorded, as were the presence of community assets, such as religious institutions, parks, and community centers. Assessments were conducted using handheld computers equipped with global positioning system (GPS) technology.
mapping the data
The neighborhood outlines used in Figure 1 are based on boundaries that were provided to CEHI by the Durham Department of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). In some cases, CEHI modified these outlines to expand the area covered by the Community Assessment Project.
Data were collected on every individual tax parcel (each building and the land on which it is located) in each of the Central Durham neighborhoods. The US Census defines areal units such as blocks, block groups, tracts, and zip codes to conduct surveys and report data. A Census block is the smallest of these units and roughly corresponds to city blocks. The maps presented in this report take individual tax parcel data and aggregate them up to the Census 2000 block level.
The data displayed in maps are grouped into five equal percentiles, called "quintiles". The first quintile contains the top 20% of the data. The second has the next 20% and so on, for a total of five quintiles. A consistent color scheme was used for all maps, in which darker colors emphasize the variable of interest.
To supplement the data collected by CEHI during the summer of 2008, CEHI obtained additional data from external sources, including:
