Employment impact of inner-city development projects: The case of underground Atlanta

This paper makes use of a unique data set to explore the issue of whether i nner-city residents are more likely to be hired by a new inner-city develop ment than non-residents. A selection model with partial observability is sp ecified and estimated. This partial observability model allows us to contro l for self-selection at the application stage and to obtain unconditional e stimates at the hiring stage. We determine, holding individual and neighbou rhood characteristics constant, that while inner-city residents are less li kely to be considered 'hireable', their greater propensity to apply for job s at this development means that they were at least as likely as non-reside nts to both apply and be hired. We also tentatively conclude that distance between an applicant's residence and the location of the development does n ot appear to have been an issue in the application decision.