A Housing Crisis: Finding A Place to Call Home
Sunday, September 19th, 2021
As the fall approaches, the days get shorter, temperatures start to drop, and Pattern has been busy designing and assembling the Housing Forum for October.
The Hudson Valley region is no different from other regions and communities across the country – we are in a housing crisis. From our large urban centers in Westchester County to the small cities and villages within the Mid-Hudson counties of Putnam, Dutchess, Orange, Ulster, and Rockland, to the more rural villages and hamlets in Columbia, Greene, and Sullivan Counties – the lack of a balanced supply of housing at all levels – including affordable, workforce, and market rate housing – is apparent. The shortage is real. The demand for housing appears to be insatiable at all price points, type, and tenure. There is a strong market for both single-family homes and multifamily rentals. The housing crisis has been upon us for decades and the lack of housing inventory has only been magnified over the last 20 months due to the impact of the Pandemic and subsequent demographic shift from the denser NYC metro area to the Hudson Valley.
This year’s Hudson Valley Housing Forum will highlight the issues and provide potential solutions to the challenges associated with increasing the supply of housing. Pattern is pleased to welcome nationally recognized speakers for conversations about best practices to address the housing crisis. The Housing Forum will be held on a virtual platform on October 26, 27, and 28 featuring housing experts on policy, research, data, as well as program practitioners to discuss solutions to the housing crisis.
Day 1: October 26, 2021
The opening keynote will be delivered by Mike Kingsella, Executive Director of Up For Growth, a national non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for working families and creating communities that are accessible and affordable for all by promoting more housing closer to jobs, efficient transportation, and desirable local amenities. Mr. Kingsella will provide a national, state, and regional perspective on how all of the housing markets have been impacted by the pandemic and offer potential policy solutions.
Karen Black, CEO of May8 Consulting, will explore solutions on preserving the housing stock and the characteristics of our communities and neighborhoods. She is very familiar with the Hudson Valley region and brings decades of experience to the conversation. Ms. Black has worked in many communities across the country with housing challenges similar to what we face here. Ms. Black brings a unique approach to improving housing through understanding the fabric of the communities and designing new opportunities to work with existing assets.
Day 2: October 27, 2021
Kristin Siglin, Vice President of Policy and Partnerships with the National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST) opens up day two of the Housing Forum. Ms. Siglin leads NCST’s policy advocacy to help communities address blight, and high rates of vacant, abandoned, and distressed properties. She also works to foster sustainable homeownership to build assets for individuals and neighborhoods. Ms. Siglin will provide a presentation on the proposed Neighborhood Homes Investment Act, which is designed to revitalize distressed suburban and rural neighborhoods with federal tax credits and mobilize private investment to build and rehabilitate half a million homes over the next 10 years. Ms. Siglin will also provide an overview of the proposed federal bills to improve our housing inventory.
Panel Discussion:
Michael Anderson from the Sightline Institute out of Portland , Oregon, will discuss how to revise single family zoning to help meet our housing challenges through small incremental development. Mr. Anderson will speak to messaging campaigns, public outreach, and coalition building on “Re-legalizing the Missing Middle Housing.”
Brenda Torpy from the Champlain Housing Trust and Brian Pine, Director of the City Community and Economic Development Office in Burlington, Vermont. Ms. Torpy and Mr. Pine will explore successful models used by Community Land Trusts to increase housing inventory and preserve affordability of single family and rental housing.
Day 3: October 28, 2021
In addition to the housing challenges for single-family homes and small rental buildings, the region is also faced with a shortage of multifamily housing. Our final session will include a dual keynote address from two dynamic and nationally recognized speakers, Baaba Halm, Vice President and Market Leader, New York, Enterprise Community Partners and Rafael Cestero, President & CEO of the Community Preservation Corporation (CPC).
Ms. Halm leads a 50-person cross-functional team delivering program, capital and policy solutions to address New York’s most complex housing challenges. Ms. Halm will deliver a presentation on capital, policy and programmatic solutions for the development of multifamily housing.
Mr. Cestero will discuss the importance for the development of a diverse portfolio of multifamily housing to improve and stabilize neighborhoods in the Hudson Valley region. Mr. Cestero will focus on the need to provide flexible capital and technical assistance to owners and developers of small buildings, and the importance of public/private partnerships in the creation and preservation of affordable housing.
As you can see – this year’s forum has been designed to offer perspectives from both local and national housing experts. Housing challenges are not unique to the Hudson Valley, as so many communities are facing similar issues throughout the country. This year’s Hudson Valley Housing Forum is an excellent opportunity to hear from experts to closely examine the root causes and potential solutions to meet the challenges we face in this housing crisis.
We hope you will join us October 26-28 in this unique platform for a participatory conversation to discuss local challenges and get to potential solutions.
