Architecture Commons^™

Screened Out Of Housing: The Impact Of Misleading Tenant Screening Reports And The Potential For Criminal Expungement As A Model For Effectively Sealing Evictions, Katelyn Polk

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

Having an eviction record “blacklists” tenants from finding future housing. Even renters with mere eviction filings—not eviction orders—on their records face the harsh collateral consequences of eviction. This Note argues that eviction records should be sealed at filing and only released into the public record if a landlord prevails in court. Juvenile record expungement mechanisms in Illinois serve as a model for one way to protect people with eviction records. Recent updates to the Illinois juvenile expungement process provided for the automatic expungement of certain records and strengthened the confidentiality protections of juvenile records. Illinois protects juvenile records because it …

New Beginnings Homeless Transition Village, Community Design Center

Project Reports

More than three million Americans experience homelessness annually. Emergency shelter capacity is limited while local governments are unable to provide even temporary housing. Informal housing involving interim self-help solutions are now popular adaptive actions for obtaining shelter despite nonconformance with city codes. Unfortunately, most informal solutions have resulted in objectionable tent cities and squatter campgrounds where the local response has simply been to move the problem around. Our homeless transition village plan prototypes a shelter-first solution using a kit-of-parts that can be replicated in other communities. Village design reconciles key gaps between informal building practices and formal sector regulations, creating …

Voices Of Cully: A Case Study Of The Living Cully Weatherization And Home Repair Project 2.0, Lucy J.T. Cultrera

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The Cully neighborhood is situated in the Northeast quadrant of Portland, Oregon. It is 2.75 square mile plot of land and home to roughly 13,000 people. In addition to being one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Portland, it is the most densely populated, with the smallest amount of parkland per capita. Over the last two decades, home value has increased 203% in Cully, compared to a 90% citywide increase. Amidst these development trends are stories of incredible resilience, resistance and activism from the affected community. My project is a case study of one anti-displacement initiative, which was developed and …

The Crisis In Housing Has Deep Roots And Supply Alone Will Not Resolve It., Tom Dunne

Conference papers

Ireland is suffering a housing crisis which will not be easily solved. This is not the first generation to struggle with housing problems. A review of history shows that property markets have pronounced cycles and a continual struggle to provide affordable housing with much direct state provision and extensive subsidises for home ownership. Part of the current crisis results from the abandonment of direct provision of housing by the state but the gradual withdrawal subsidies for owner occupation, has also made a contribution to making home ownership less affordable for many.

A crucial part of dealing with the crisis is …

Renting Trouble: Current Government Policy Of Relying On The Private Rented Sector To Deliver Social Housing Is Unlikely To Succeed, Tom Dunne

Reports

A review of the history of housing in Ireland shows that owner occupancy and social housing were policy choices by successive governments. Owner occupancy was heavily supported through a system of grants and tax breaks and social housing was directly provided through local authorities at subsidised rents. In recent years policy has changed and tenure neutrality is now guiding the government’s attitude to housing. This is a significant change which has not been sufficiently discussed and has consequences which are not appreciated. Relying on the market to provide rental housing for people on low incomes and who may be in …

Response To Comments: The Informal Housing Debate Remains Open, Jonathan P. Bell

Jonathan P. Bell

UrbDeZine, November 12, 2014. In this follow up article on informal housing in Los Angeles, I respond to comments and take on critics who devalue housing code enforcement. I argue that unpermitted housing is inherently unsafe, and unsafe housing is not a viable housing option. I call for all sides of the informal housing debate to come together to look for solutions. URL: http://losangeles.urbdezine.com/2014/11/12/response-to-comments-the-informal-housing-debate-remains-open/

Post-Disaster Housing Recovery: The Promise And Peril Of Social Capital, Anuradha Mukherji

Anuradha Mukherji

Researchers argue that social networks based on shared values, trust, and norms can facilitate collective action, and such social capital increases the ability of communities to recover after a disaster, implying that the presence of social capital ensures collective community action after a disaster and enables recovery. Drawing from comparative case studies of Bhuj and Bachhau, urban centres impacted by the 2001 Gujarat earthquake in India, this study presents a nuanced view of the role of social capital during post-disaster recovery. It argues that it is important to consider community contexts that are inherent to the amount of social capital …

Post-Earthquake Housing Recovery In Bachhau, India: The Homeowner, The Renter, And The Squatter, Anuradha Mukherji

Anuradha Mukherji

This paper looks at post-earthquake housing recovery in Bachhau, a town close to the epicenter of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake in western India. This research examines the difference in housing recovery outcomes among homeowners, squatters, and renters in Bachhau, in order to understand why single-family homeowners and squatters were able to rebuild and improve their housing conditions whereas low-income renters continued to struggle toward housing recovery. This paper shows that communities in Bachhau did not have the resources or capacities to rebuild themselves and that appropriate public assistance was critical for housing recovery. While public assistance was mainly targeted to …

Urban Form In Europe And America, Pietro S. Nivola

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

Why do America's cities sprawl whereas European cities remain comparatively compact, and what difference do the patterns of urban development make? Pietro Nivola, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, addresses these questions. Nivola examines two kinds of determinants of urban form: (1) market forces, including those influenced by geography, demographics, and technological change, and (2) public policies shaping national transportation systems, tax policy, educational institutions, and more. He also discusses the implications of the different cityscapes for energy consumption.

Negotiating Housing Recovery In Post-Earthquake Urban Kutch, India, Anuradha Mukherji

Anuradha Mukherji

The 2001 Kutch earthquake, in Gujarat state in western India, destroyed 230,000 houses and damaged another 1 million. In Bhuj and Bachhau, urban centers close to the epicenter of the earthquake, single-family houses, squatter settlements, and high-rise apartments were destroyed, and public and private housing reconstruction programs were introduced to help communities rebuild their houses. However, five years after the disaster, in spite of interventions by local and global, public and private entities, many communities in both towns continued to struggle towards housing recovery. This dissertation examines why some communities were able to rebuild and improve their overall housing conditions …

All Party Oireachtas Committee On The Constitution Ninth Progress Report, Tom Dunne

Reports

Ireland, like many other countries with high rates of economic growth, is urbanising rapidly. There has been considerable emphasis on planning for this through the National Development Plan, the National Spatial Strategy, development guidelines and other measures. Through these the state intends that a proper planning process will lead growth rather than leaving it to market forces to drive development in what are regarded as undesirable directions. The latter it is feared will lead to unsuitable social, economic or physical outcomes. Unintended results have flowed from the implementation, or flawed implementation of many of these policies and have given rise …

Town Of Amesbury, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report explored the town of Amesbury, Massachusetts. Amesbury’s municipal government was supported by diverse citizen groups and business organizations. The town was a suburban community with abundant natural resources and a delightful village core.

Town Of Boxford, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report explores the town of Boxford, Massachusetts. Boxford is a unique rural community in the Merrimack Valley and the Boston metropolitan area. It has no traffic lights, sidewalks or signs, and very few streetlights, or commercial or industrial activity. Because of its 50-year old 2-acre zoning and close proximity to Boston, which contribute to its high housing costs, this community is out of reach for most Massachusetts residents.

Town Of Lawrence, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report takes a look at the town of Lawrence, Massachusetts. Lawrence, originally a rural farming town, was transformed into a major industrial center when Boston Entrepreneurs developed huge textile mills on the Merrimack River to use the power of its water falls. The mill owners built canals, a dam and reservoir, boarding houses and a machine shop for locomotives, creating one of the first industrial complexes in the country.

Town Of Andover, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

Andover is a suburban community of 32 square miles with a population of 29,000. The town is located just 20 miles south of Boston at the intersection of I-93 and I-495. With easy access to the city and Logan Airport, Andover is home to many of the largest high-technology firms such as Hewlett-Packard, Raytheon, Digital, Gillette, and Genetics Institute.

Town Of Georgetown, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report focuses on the town of Georgetown, Massachusetts. While it was still widely forested, with many acres of open and recreation land, the town also had a walkable village core as well as industrial and commercial development. The town was renowned for its thriving antique industry and also boasted an organ manufacturing company, a supermarket and an expanding public golf and country club.

Town Of Merrimac, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

Starting out as a farming and maritime community in the 1600’s, Merrimac, Massachusetts became an active manufacturing community through the 19^th century with thirty-one different carriage factories, and today has developed into principally a residential community.

Town Of Methuen, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

Methuen, Massachusetts played a significant role in this country’s industrial revolution, which began in the Merrimack Valley. In the mid-to late 19^th century, mills along the Spicket River and Spicket Falls produced hats, shoes, and textiles.

Town Of Salisbury, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

Salisbury, Massachusetts has the history and the skeleton of a typical New England village, but has lost much of the identifiable character to post 1950 regulated development. (Town of Salisbury Local Partnership Committee Economic Development Plan, 1996) Today Salisbury has two identifiable centers. The historic town center, known as Salisbury Square, and the Salisbury Beach…

Town Of Groveland, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report takes a look at Groveland, Massachusetts. Groveland is a small residential community that retains all of the characteristics of a friendly rural town in the setting of a convenient suburb. The town was incorporated in 1850, and changed gradually from an agricultural community to one that is almost wholly residential.

Town Of Newburyport, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

Newburyport is a diverse and thriving city that harmonizes commercial, residential and industrial needs. Nestled on the shores where the Merrimack River meets the Atlantic Ocean Newburyport is among the smallest cities in the state.

Moving Toward The Millennium With Open Space In Huntington, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

This report includes presentation and examination of community, environmental and conservation/recreation issues. The information is then analyzed according to the needs of the town and incorporated into recommendations for future action.

Laying The Groundwork: Preparing For A Master Plan In Deerfield, Ma, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

In April of 1998 a Master Plan Committee was established to start work toward the first Master Plan for Deerfield, Massachusetts. A major catalyst for this decision was chronic septic failure throughout much of Deerfield. This failure raised the question of whether or not Deerfield should expand its public sewer. Expanding the system would solve the immediate problem of septic failure, but could potentially encourage unwanted development and create a new cycle of problems.

Town Of North Andover, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

North Andover, Massachusetts lies along the banks of the Merrimack River and is surrounded by the Towns of Methuen, Haverhill, Boxford, Andover, Middleton, North Reading, and the City of Lawrence. The settlement of the town began in 1640 and was incorporated as Andover in 1646. North Andover is governed by an open Town Meeting form of government, a five-member Board of Selectmen and a Town Manager pursuant to a Home Rule Charter that went into effect in 1986.

Greater Franklin Area Trends Analysis Report, Umass Amherst Center Economic Development

Center for Economic Development Technical Reports

The Greater Franklin Area, located in south-central Massachusetts, is composed of nine communities along Route 495. The region was experiencing unprecedented growth pressures. In response, the United Chamber of Commerce had organized a Regional Community Visioning Process. This Trends Analysis Report was one product from Phase I of the process.