Our Homes: Ending the Housing Crisis

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Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Social Housing in San Francisco Sep 15, 2022

Show notes

Social housing in San Francisco’s needs to meet two criterias: owned by the city, a nonprofit, residents, or a residents’ association that ensures permanent long term affordable housing and serves all income qualified households with a maximum average of not more than 80% of median income across all units. There are many new social housing developments underway in San Francisco including developing churches into social housing and using land trusts to make affordable housing.

Hans How is a member of the C&C of San Francisco Housing Stability Fund Oversight Board, a public body formed to provide oversight on San Francisco’s funds for the creation of social housing. He also acts as a program manager for housing initiatives at Meta. He discusses the city's new social housing programs. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Missing Middle Housing Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

At Optico Design, Stefan Pellegrini works within the field of missing middle housing. Missing middle housing are house-scaled buildings with multiple units in walkable neighborhoods used to address shifting household demographics between baby boomers and millennials. Millennials are less likely to have children and are in need of affordable housing that comes in forms of duplexes, townhouses, live/work housing, apartments, etc..

Stefan Pellegrini is an architect, urban designer, and planner who advocates for equitable design and social and environmental justice in cities, with a focus on physical placemaking strategies that empower residents, build social capital, and nurture community. He is a principal with Opticos Design, Inc., an urban design, planning, and architecture practice based in Berkeley, California. His work spans more than twenty years and includes mixed-income neighborhoods, downtown urban design plans, community revitalization strategies, and regional plans and codes across the US and abroad. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Housing in Dhaka, Bangladesh Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

Bangladesh is considered the most vulnerable country to climate change with sea level rising threatening its coastal regions, Himalayan snow melts flooding its northern regions, and frequent natural disasters occurring (cyclones and hurricanes). On top of climate related issues, Bangladesh also faces major economic concerns as one of the poorest nations in the world. Both climate and economic matters affect energy access for poorer neighborhoods in Bangladesh. Mark Jones examined energy justice for informal settlements in the global south with a slum in Dhaka as his case study.

Mark Jones, Associate Professor at the University of Queensland School of Architecture, extensively researched issues relating to climate change including emissions mitigation, urban climate response, bio-physical adaptation and social resilience. In 2020, Jones completed his PhD at the University College London, conducting research in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: A Proposal for the Ala Wai Village and Green Aug 04, 2022

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Sanford Murata wants to build bigger and better. He is proposing a better way to use the land of the Ala Wai Golf Course. Drawing from the Chinese idea of a "Sponge City", this project will store and filter excess water in the canal and release it at opportune times. The project will have two developments: "Ala Wai Village" and "Ala Wai Green". The "Village" would be a series of multi-use affordable housing with 3600 residential units and the "Green" would be a multi-use resource park which would help filter and use the water from the Ala Wai canal to grow a beautiful green space.

Sanford Murata, a real estate professional who studied architecture and urban land economics at the University of California at Berkeley proposes a new Ala Wai village. He has been involved in planning, development, and ownership of a range of real estate projects in Hawaii, his newest being the Ala Wai village. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Achieving Social Housing in California with Assembly Bill 2053 Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

Assemblymember Alex Lee currently has Assembly Bill 2053 (AB 2053) pending before the California State Legislature that will help the state achieve social housing for all. Social housing is mixed income, publicly developed housing for all that avoids concentrated poverty. He hopes that AB 2053 creates a self sustaining neighborhood with equitable housing for all, no matter their economic status.

Alex Lee represents California’s 25th Assembly District, located in the Silicon Valley region. Assemblymember Lee, elected in 2020, became the youngest Asian American legislator and first openly bisexual state legislator in California history. In the State Legislature, he has made housing affordability and tackling the housing crisis his top priority. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Hawaii’s Need for Affordable Housing Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

Edward Pinto and Tobias Peter discuss their research on housing and the housing crisis in Hawaii. Hawaii has the highest median home price in the country, second highest cost of rent, and second highest rate of homelessness per capita. The plunge in Hawaii’s housing market began in the early 1970s when the state passed environmental and land usage policies causing a housing shortage and increase in housing prices. There is dire need for affordable housing in Hawaii but the state is predicted to face a shortage of 60,000 housing units by 2025.

Edward Pinto is a senior fellow and the director of the Housing Center at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He is currently researching ways of increasing the entry-level housing supply for first-time buyers and renters who earn hourly wages, as well as examining the current house price boom that began in 2012. Tobias Peter is a research fellow and the assistant director of the AEI’s Housing Center, where he focuses on housing risk and mortgage markets. Peter wrote a variety of reports on housing policy, specifically on the impact of federal policy on housing demand and homeownership, housing finance risks, and first-time home buyers. His pieces have been published in policy journals and in the popular press, including in The Wall Street Journal, American Banker, and Business Insider. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: The Biden-Harris Administration on Building Affordable Housing Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

The Biden-Harris administration has made efforts to promote housing development. While the Build Back Better bill has stalled, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and the American Rescue Plan passed last year have been essential in supporting American housing. Erika Poethig explains that at the heart of almost every issue from crime to poverty is related to a lack of housing stability. By investing in creating more housing units, maintaining our available stock of housing, and assembling coalitions of agencies and governments, the U.S. can make housing affordable.

Erika Poethig, the Special Assistant to the President for Housing and Urban Policy at the White House’s Domestic Policy Council, discusses America’s housing problem and federal housing policy. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Social Housing in America Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

America's investment on public housing has slowly shrunk over the past two decades. According to Paul Williams, this has led to housing being underbuilt and overpriced. But with this investment comes questions about how it will be paid for and what it will look like.

Paul Williams is a social housing researcher whose work has been used by the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the House Financial Services Committee in putting together the largest investment in housing ever made. Williams discusses the importance of investing in our public housing. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: How Frances Perkins Changed America Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

In 2009, Kirstin Downey published The Woman Behind the New Deal, a biography of path-breaking government official Frances Perkins, a book that was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book prize and named one of the top ten biographies of the year by the American Library Association. She discusses Perkins, her work, and her impact on American worker rights.

As an award winning investigative journalist, Kirstin Downey, has been reporting on problematic real estate loans and mortgage meltdowns for the Washington Post. She has also worked as a special correspondent for Honolulu Civil Beat, reporting on how actions taken in Washington affect the state. She is currently writing a new history of Hawaii during the first 50 years after Captain Cook arrived, with a focus on Kauai’s Chief Kaumualii. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

Our Homes - Ending the Housing Crisis: Illustrating 1000 Homes Per Acre Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

Alfred Twu discusses 1000 homes per acre, a proposal used to address housing shortages. Supermarkets, convenience stores, banks, barber shops, etc., all need at least 1000 or more households nearby to support their businesses. Twu argues that the conveniences associated with the 1000 homes per acre proposal benefits everyone and helps mitigate the current housing shortages in the U.S.

Alfred Twu is an architect and artist in Berkeley, California. In the past, Twu worked on various housing issues and campaigns in California at both the state and local levels with organizations such as the California Democratic Renters Council, East Bay for Everyone, and others. He has directly dealt with zoning reform, rent control, tenants rights, and social housing. Recently, he has been appointed to the Berkeley Planning Commission. This episode of Our Homes is hosted by Senator Stanley Chang.

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