May 2010

  • Sustainability: Still a Novel Idea

    I had an exchange with an acquaintance about a recent tweet we put out when we were covering the fourth annual summit of the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations. The tweet made a quick reference (since we’re limited…

  • Not Just Affordable Housing, but Connections to Neighborhoods

    Shelley Poticha, director of HUD’s Office of Sustainable Housing and Community Development, speaking at NACEDA’s annual summit, outlined two main grant programs in HUD’s Sustainable Communities Program and placed a heavy emphasis on how communities address growth at a regional…

  • Ford Foundation Announces Five-Year, $200M Metro Program

    The Ford Foundation has announced a five-year, $200 million effort to help “transform the way that cities, suburbs and surrounding communities grow and plan for the future” by anchoring housing, transportation, and land-use policy to promote economic growth. The program also aims to build on successful collaborations and policy innovations Ford has supported in communities throughout the country, providing models that can be adopted and adapted in other metropolitan regions. The initiative was announced by Ford Foundation President Luis A. Ubiñas to some 300 local, state, and federal leaders gathered to discuss the revitalization of American communities that once relied almost solely on the auto industry for jobs and growth. Urbinas said metropolitan communities should plan together and collaborate on challenges that include affordable housing, infrastructure investments, education and job creation. For more, click here. more

  • HAMP Moving Along Slowly

    The rate of permanent loan modifications for homeowners involved in the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program increased increased in March by roughly 13 percent, or 68,000 modifications, in a sign of positive news for the government program that has, to…

  • HUD’s New Plan

    When we conducted our interview with HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, and the soon-to-be-published interviews with Sandra B. Henriquez, HUD’s Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing, and Raphael Bostic, Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research, a common theme we…

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    Adolfo Carrión: We Hardly Knew You! (In This Capacity)

    First it was the Office of Urban Policy. Then, at the time of its launch in 2009, it quietly turned into the Office of Urban Affairs: a small, but interesting name change. Its director, Adolfo Carrion, the former Bronx borough…

  • Housing Advocacy Group Gets $5M Anonymous Donation

    From the National Low Income Housing Coalition The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) announced today that it had received an anonymous $5 million donation from a consortium of Coalition members “for the purpose of advancing the Coalition’s mission to achieve socially just public policy that assures people with the lowest incomes in the United States have affordable and decent homes.” The gift will be used to start a new endowment, the Coalition, which has a $2.6 million annual budget, said in a news release. NLIHC Treasurer Moises Loza first announced the gift at NLIHC’s annual meeting held on April 12 in Washington, DC. The gift is from “long-time members of NLIHC who believe in our mission and admire our work,” Loza said, adding that the gift is “extraordinary and substantially expands our capacity.” more