Finding financing is one of the biggest challenges for transit-oriented development. How did Portland convince its lenders to get on board?
Noah Kazis looks at how Portland, Oregon overcame the resistance of lenders to new forms of development:
"Megan Gibb runs Metro's transit-oriented development program, which works with developers and offers financial incentives for TOD. The Crossings, for example, received discounted land, tax breaks, and other financial incentives from Metro. "Our whole program is to build more market-comparables," said Gibb. "The more TOD projects there are, the more it builds on itself." Each project that gets built makes the next one easier to finance."
Kazis says that cities often need to "double down" on new projects, offering considerable incentives to break through the inertia and create new models.
Thanks to Noah Kazis
FULL STORY: How Portland Sold Its Banks on Walkable Development
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New York City's Dept. of City Planning says that it is committed to fostering transit-oriented development. But in neighborhood after neighborhood, the city is downzoning around the corner from the subway, argues Noah Kazis.
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