HOW DO FUNDING AND REVIEW PROCESSES SHAPE THE DESIGN OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING: LESSONS FROM MASSACHUSETTS

How do the notoriously complicated funding and approval processes for affordable housing shape the design of those projects? In a forthcoming paper, that will be jointly published by the Joint Center and Enterprise Community Partners, Inc., Donald Taylor-Patterson, a second-year Master of Urban Planning Student at GSD, and David Luberoff, the Joint Center’s Deputy Director, examine this question in the greater Boston area by reviewing the ways in which the state allocates its annual allotment of federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), interviewing leading local experts, and observing Enterprise’s Affordable Housing Design Leadership Institute, which brings together non-profit developers and design professionals. They find that, while state and local regulations and approvals may impact design in negative ways, well-designed processes can help ensure that design considerations are not given short shrift in the process of developing affordable housing. Katie Swenson, Vice President of National Design Initiatives at Enterprise Community Partners, will provide additional comments on the topic.

Co-sponsored by Enterprise Community Partners.

These presentations are part of the Center’s ongoing Housing Research Seminar Series, which gives faculty, senior researchers, and graduate students the opportunity to present and discuss current and recent work with a mix of scholars and practitioners. 

Bring your lunch. Dessert & coffee provided.

This event will also be livestreamed on Twitter.