Renowned Panel of Land Use, Planning, and Development Experts to Visit Area from July 7-12

For more information, contact Trisha Riggs, 202-679-4557; [email protected]

WASHINGTON (July 2, 2019) — A group of nationally renowned land use, urban planning and real estate development experts representing the Urban Land Institute (ULI) will be making recommendations next week to Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser on increasing the supply of affordable housing in the Rock Creek West Planning District, which includes Ward 3, parts of  Wards 2 and 4, and is one of the District of Columbia’s most affluent areas. ULI is a global, multidisciplinary real estate organization whose work is driven by more than 44,000 members dedicated to responsible land use and building thriving, sustainable communities.

The ULI panel of housing experts, convened through ULI’s renowned Advisory Services Program, will be visiting the city from July 7-12. Their assignment stems from the mayor’s plan to provide 36,000 housing units across the city by 2025, with 12,000 of those being low- and moderate-income units. Panelists will be evaluating how to distribute the affordable housing units more equitably across the city, with a specific focus on the placement of units in the Rock Creek West area.

Sponsored by the District of Columbia and the ULI Foundation, the Advisory Services panelists will consider and provide strategic recommendations on:

• Identifying and prioritizing the barriers to new housing production, focusing on an area of D.C. characterized primarily by single-family homes and corridors of more dense development;
• Outlining specific tools, policies and changes that will enable the District to overcome cost barriers and development capacity constraints;
• Developing a strategy to produce a significant amount of affordable housing in Rock Creek West over the next six years; and
• Identifying opportunities to increase residents’ engagement with and support for affordable housing in Rock Creek West.

The panel will be chaired by leading ULI member Philip Payne, chief executive officer of Ginkgo Residential in Charlotte, North Carolina. Payne has more than 20 years of experience in the development, acquisition, rehabilitation and management of mixed-income multifamily housing. “The lack of affordable housing is reaching crisis levels across the country.  Unfortunately, Washington is no exception,” Payne said.  “What is different in the District is the time, effort, and determination that is being put into addressing this issue. The panel is committed to assisting in this effort and will help the city develop an actionable plan for achieving its goal of increasing the supply of affordable housing in the District.”

Payne will be joined on the panel by David Greensfelder, managing principal, Greensfelder Commercial Real Estate, LLC, Albany, California; Brad Leibin, associate, David Baker Architects, Oakland, California; Christopher Ptomey, executive director, ULI’s Terwilliger Center for Housing, Washington, D.C.; Brian Rajan Nagendra, founder, abacus impact, llc, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Chris Riley, city council member, Place 1, City of Austin, Austin, Texas; Heather Worthington, director, long range planning, City of Minneapolis, Minneapolis; and Keith Harris, principal, CKG Advisors LLC, Oak Park, Illinois.

“The independent views of our experts will provide a fresh perspective on ways to address the lack of moderate-income housing, which is a challenging issue from a real estate and social standpoint,” said ULI Global Chief Executive Officer W. Edward Walter. “Our panel’s assignment in Washington will help inform ULI’s future work on expanding housing options in cities around the world.”

The panel is part of a series of ULI panels that will be assisting some of the nation’s most expensive cities with strategies to increase access to affordable and mixed-income housing – a priority for many areas seeking to attract and retain talented workers in various stages of their careers. This work builds on that of previous panels focused on housing affordability, including panels addressing housing challenges in Chicago, Illinois; Naples, Florida; Los Angeles, California; and Dallas, Texas.

Increasing the supply of affordable housing throughout urban areas is a major part of ULI’s ongoing efforts to improve the quality of life in communities globally. ULI’s Terwilliger Center for Housing recently published Attainable Housing: Challenges, Perceptions and Solutions, which explores impediments to providing affordable and moderate-income housing and offers solutions to overcome the obstacles.

The strength of ULI’s advisory services program stems from the Institute’s unique ability to draw on the substantial knowledge of its 44,000-plus members, who represent all real estate disciplines. Now in its 72^nd year, the ULI advisory services program assembles experts in the fields of real estate and land use planning to participate on panels worldwide, offering recommendations for complex planning and development projects, programs and policies. Panels have developed more than 700 studies for a broad range of land uses, ranging from waterfront properties to inner-city retail.

NOTE TO REPORTERS AND EDITORS: Members of the public and media are invited to the presentation of the panel’s recommendations on Friday, July 12, from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Woodrow Wilson High School, 3950 Chesapeake St NW, in Wilson Auditorium.

The panel’s recommendations will be discussed in further detail  during a session at ULI’s Fall Meeting, scheduled from September 18-21 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. To register for the Fall Meeting, click here, or for more information, please contact Trish Riggs or Justin Arnold.