Affordable Housing

D.C. Inclusionary Zoning Tweaks Would Serve Lower Income Households

The D.C. Zoning Commission will be the first to consider staff recommendations for adjustments to District's inclusionary zoning policy.

January 13, 2016 - Greater Greater Washington

Proposed Blight Solution: Shift Subsidies from Rent to Ownership

Pittsburgh mayor Bill Peduto thinks Section 8 housing subsidies could get two birds with one stone: help low-income households find affordable housing and reduce blight.

January 12, 2016 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A New Jersey Town Comes Undone Over Affordable Housing

Faced with a court ordered requirement to provide its fair share of affordable housing, one New Jersey town's residents have lashed out with some anti-Semitic overtones against plans for a new development.

January 11, 2016 - The Atlantic

Numerous Studies Underway Toward Dallas' First Affordable Housing Policy

Developers and policy makers alike are looking for more certainty when it comes to affordable housing in the city of Dallas.

January 5, 2016 - The Dallas Morning News

What subprime crisis? Affordable houses are everywhere.

Rising Rents Leaving the Middle Class Behind

A Harvard study has found that those making $45,000 per year are struggling to meet the increasing cost of rent in cities across the country.

January 4, 2016 - NBC News

Portland Renter Protection Rules Backfire in Raised Rents

Rents continue to rise in Portland, and new rules have precipitated even more raised rents for populations that can least afford the new costs.

December 27, 2015 - The Oregonian

16 Case Studies of Workforce Housing Protection

A new report from the Urban Land Institute responds to what it argues is a housing crisis among lower- and middle-income workers.

December 22, 2015 - Urban Land

The Citizens Budget Commission Reports on NYC's Housing Affordability

As Mayor de Blasio pulls out all the stops to make the case for zoning proposals critical to his affordable housing plans, the Citizens Budget Commission assessed the economics of housing construction in the city.

December 19, 2015 - New York Citizens Budget Commission

The 'Both/And' of the Housing Debate

Planners and community development housing activists and professionals need to start thinking about housing policy as "both...and." It is not reasonable to couch housing policy as either unfettered building or only rent.

December 16, 2015 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Have We Been Wasting Affordable Housing Money?

It might seem like 10, or even 30, years is a long time to require affordability—until it's over and your public investment is lost.

December 15, 2015 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Vancouver Hands Residents the Keys to Granny Flats

Leading other expensive cities in North America, Vancouver, British Columbia is quickly adding accessory dwelling units as a result of permissive regulations approved in 2009.

December 14, 2015 - Citiscope

Love Sculpture NYC

5 Social Equity Problems Planners Should Help Solve

Urban planners should take a leadership role in placing social equity at the top of planning goals, argues planner, teacher, and affordable housing developer Murtaza Baxamusa. He looks at five socio-economic problems planners should strive to solve.

December 13, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Report: Most New Rental Units Affordable Only for the Wealthy

A new report from the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies adds to what seems, at this point, like a tsunami of bad news for rental housing affordability.

December 10, 2015 - The Washington Post

Fix Housing Supply, Save the City: Is it Really That Easy?

Planning wonks might have felt all warm inside when they noticed zoning topics wedging their way into broader conversations about community affordability and equity. Bring it on. Finally.

December 8, 2015 - PlaceShakers

Hoboken, New Jersey

A Hoboken Resident Finds Fault in Parking Minimums

In older, denser communities like Hoboken, NJ, where almost everything is walkable and land value is sky high, why are city officials still requiring parking minimums?

December 8, 2015 - Strong Towns

Damage Control for New York's Big Zoning Proposals

One of the nation's most ambitious efforts to upzone neighborhoods in the hope of spurring more market rate and affordable housing supply is up for debate in New York City. A lot of people don't like the plan.

December 5, 2015 - Politico New York

Community Land Trusts Laying Down Roots in Baltimore

There are 200 community land trusts in the country, so the idea clearly has traction. With three organizations pursuing new community land trusts, the model might soon have a new test bed in Baltimore as well.

December 2, 2015 - The Baltimore Sun

Lending Inequalities Undercut Baltimore's Potential

Baltimore's housing stock is relatively accessible compared to many other cities on the East Coast, yet deeply ingrained issues of inequality still plague the potential for homeownership to assist in the city's recovery.

November 28, 2015 - The Atlantic

Hello Miami!

Plenty of Luxury Units to Go Around—While Affordable Housing Gets Less Affordable

The market for luxury apartment rentals is booming; the market for affordable rentals is not.

November 19, 2015 - The Atlantic

San Francisco

San Francisco Planning Department Proposes Increasing Heights in Neighborhoods

The San Francisco Planning Department is proposing a trade-off to neighborhoods to comply with a state density bonus law: Modestly increase height and density limits in exchange for more affordable housing.

November 19, 2015 - Hoodline

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

Director, Strategy and Research

Greater Baltimore Committee

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