No More Public Housing?

Last week during American Studies Day, I got the privilege to see former New Trier student, and now Northwestern graduate student, Molly Metzger. She spoke about the importance of public housing in Chicago, and how the Chicago Housing Authority is currently demolishing many of the public housing sites.
This ties in interestingly to our class discussions about the social class system in America. Affordable and public housing houses many people of the lower class in America, and by demolishing many of the buildings, is Chicago in a way, trying to "get rid of" the lower class?
Chicago is becoming nicer as the years go on. Expensive apartments are being built, more and more people are moving to the city, it is up and coming. Could Chicago be trying to "clean up" the city by getting rid of, or rehabilitating the public housing?
It is definitely a possibility, and in my opinion, the idea isn't too far-fetched. However, the demolition of public housing is an increasing problem, as many residents are being moved out of their homes unwillingly. In 2010, 232,000 people applied for public housing, with only 40,000 slots available. It is a problem that clearly needs to be addressed. These apartments are homes, and by destroying them, we could be destroying lives.
The image to the right is Cabrini-Green, one of the public housing apartment buildings that have been demolished.