94. Katelin Penner - 2023 Annual Conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. These next 3 episodes will conclude our annual conference content. We hope you enjoyed it, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s conference. For our program today, we were joined by Ms. Katelin Penner. Currently, Ms. Penner is an urban planner for NYC HPD's Office of Neighborhood Strategies focused on the conversion of publicly owned vacant land to deeply affordable housing. She is also the Co-Editor in Chief of the "Hunter Urban Review."    Conventional methods to making housing more affordable have failed so far. And because the housing crisis is so complex, it will require more creative solutions.   Katelin is a master’s student at Hunter College where she studies urban planning. Her research focuses on vacant lots, the impacts of municipal austerity measures, and community resilience. She put together a fascinating presentation on innovative policies being tested around the world.   Together we discussed potential uses of vacant land, how local governments can better incentivize more equitable uses of housing, and some of the benefits of co-op and tenant-led ownership models.