With home sale prices growing faster than anywhere in the country, the Steel City could enact major reforms to boost density and lower housing costs.
A raft of proposed city policies in Pittsburgh take aim at housing affordability, reports Deidre Woollard for Benzinga. The proposal, to be presented to city council next year, would legalize accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and incentivize transit-oriented development (TOD), focusing on multifamily housing near transit stops. “In April, Redfin reported that Steel City had the fastest-growing sales price in the country, up 22% year over year.”
The city also plans to change the parking requirements for new housing to create more walkable mixed-use development and pave the way for adaptive reuse. Another zoning change is an update to the minimum lot size per unit, allowing more apartment buildings to be built on smaller lots.
The proposed reforms would require 10 percent affordable units in buildings with 20 units or more. However, “Local housing advocate Davit Vatz of Pro-Housing told CoStar News that inclusionary zoning can work against affordable housing goals if developers build fewer units to skirt the rules.”
FULL STORY: This Popular Real Estate Market Wants To Mandate Affordable Housing, Will It Work?
Pittsburgh Mayor Proposes Zoning Changes to Curb Housing Shortage
The mayor’s plan includes legalizing ADUs in single-family neighborhoods, eliminating parking requirements, and adding new affordability requirements to buildings with over 20 units.
Minneapolis as a Model for Housing Affordability
Through a combination of policies, the city has managed to limit the severity of the nationwide housing crisis.
A Look at Milwaukee’s Proposed Zoning Reform
The proposed changes would permit more flexible housing development while limiting changes in historic neighborhoods and on smaller streets.
How Would Project 2025 Affect America’s Transportation System?
Long story short, it would — and not in a good way.
But... Europe
European cities and nations tend to have less violent crime than the United States. Is government social welfare spending the magic bullet that explains this difference?
First Model Homes Revealed in Disney-Built Community
Disney’s Cotino, in the Southern California desert, is the first of the company’s ‘Storybook Living’ developments.
Housing Top of Mind for Nevada Voters
The Silver State is the nation’s most unaffordable housing market for extremely low-income households.
California Governor Vetoes Autonomous Truck Ban, Approves New Guidelines for AVs
A new law will allow police to issue citations to self-driving car operators and create stricter guidelines for crashes and interactions with first responders.
Banning Right Turns on Red Just One Step Toward Vision Zero
Experts caution that blanket bans on right turns on red make only a slight contribution to reducing fatal crashes, and other interventions are needed to bring down traffic fatalities.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Berkeley County
City of El Paso
Ada County Highway District
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Cornell University's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the Department of City and Regional Planning (CRP)
Lehigh Valley Planning Commission
City of Portland, ME
Baton Rouge Area Foundation