Housing Conversation: From Research to Reality
The Montgomery County Planning Board, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, invites residents to attend or watch on-demand the three-part Speaker Series, “Housing Conversation: From Research to Reality.”
Co-sponsored with the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland, College Park, the conversations with national and local experts and thought leaders will focus on the latest innovations, trends, and what’s working to increase housing options and affordability in neighborhoods across the country.
“With the Planning Board’s approval of Attainable Housing Strategies, we wanted to take a look at what is happening regionally and nationally to tackle the housing crisis,” said Planning Board Chair Artie Harris. “We hope these conversations can highlight best practices and inspire new ideas so that Montgomery County can truly have housing for all.”
All sessions are open to the public and will be held in the M-NCPPC Wheaton Headquarters (2425 Reedie Drive, Second Floor Auditorium, Wheaton, MD) from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. They will also be livestreamed on the Planning Board website and made available on-demand. The sessions will include a presentation and discussion as well as a time for questions and answers.
Session Recaps
Intersection: Land Use and Housing Supply, a National and Local Perspective—July 18, 2024
Local land use regulations, such as zoning, are the most direct way that jurisdictions can regulate housing supply, but what else should planners be focusing on? What can planners do to increase housing supply? Join the Planning Board to hear about tools being used nationally to increase housing supply, followed by an analysis of the local housing market.
Montgomery Planning Board Chair Artie Harris and Planning Board members hosted the first of three 2024 Speaker Series panel discussions open to the community focused on housing innovations, trends and how to increase housing options and affordability. Co-sponsored by the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland, College Park, the first event featured panelists Yonah Freemark, Principal Research Associate of the Urban Institute, and Lisa Sturtevant, Chief Economist for Bright MLS. They each offered data and ideas on how jurisdictions can increase housing supply.
A Tale from our Partners: Lessons learned from the trenches—September 19, 2024
In the July session, the panel discussed various ways localities are addressing housing supply shortages. But how have they worked in practice? As jurisdictions across the country embark on plans to increase housing supply, this session examined lessons learned from agencies that have already implemented attainable housing strategies. Representatives from Oregon, St. Paul, MN, and Arlington, VA, shared their initiatives over the past five years to encourage more housing development, talking about what worked, what didn’t work, what they would do differently, and what advice they have to offer.
Panel:
Emma Brown, Senior City Planner, St. Paul, Minnesota Department of Planning and Economic Development
Mari Valencia Aguilar, Senior Housing Planner, Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development
Richard Tucker, Housing Arlington Coordinator, Arlington, VA, Department of Community Planning, Housing & Development
Practitioner’s Panel: Implementation Successes and Areas of Focus—October 17, 2024
Join the Planning Board to hear from developers and industry experts that have leveraged relaxed zoning and other creative tools to develop attainable housing. Discover what worked, where were the challenges, and what Montgomery County can do to actualize attainable housing.
Panel:
Jack Wilbern, Founding Principal, bwdarchitects
Rosie Hepner, Vice President, ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing
Tony Perez, Senior Associate, Opticos Design, Inc.