Distributional studies of municipal service provision which do not make allowances for population losses and relocation as well as for austerity impacts can make serious inferential errors about intended beneficiaries. In this study, the relocation of fire, police, library, and school facilities are examined in the context of New York City's rapid population change and service retrenchment in the 1960 – 1984 period. The findings demonstrate a continuing spatial disequilibrium of services. Shortages persist in some neighborhoods and underutilization in others as population shifts more rapidly than the services can relocate.