2020January
"‘Roach motels’ beat being homeless. But why can’t California innovate on housing?"
Why don’t we have more options for affordable shelter?
“It’s a largely self-inflicted problem,” said Patrick Kennedy, a Bay Area developer at the forefront of housing innovation. Restrictive building codes and expensive labor agreements drive up costs, making it hard to build affordably, he said.
His advice to state leaders?
“Look outside of the ‘affordable housing industrial complex’ which, by its very nature, has a cost structure and management structure that results in much higher costs for the product,” said Kennedy, who believes private developers can build affordable housing faster and cheaper…”
...More"Q&A with Oakland’s Matt Horn, the pitmaster behind the most anticipated barbecue restaurant in America"
Before Matt Horn served his first plate of smoked brisket and ribs out of an old service station at 17th and Center Streets in West Oakland on Saturday afternoon, more than 100 people were outside the building waiting to order. The scene was like a musical festival and Horn’s popup was the headlining act.
...More"Cram More People into New York City"
It and other ‘superstar’ cities should be denser.
I lived in New York City for about five years and hated every second of it. My first complaint was that it was too dense. My second, paradoxically, was that it was not dense enough.
...More"Everything You Think You Know About Housing Is Probably Wrong"
In cities, many people think “density” means crowded neighborhoods and greedy developers, but a new show at the Skyscraper Museum tells a different story.
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"Top 25 Finalists for 2020 Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability Announced"
Housing innovators selected for their work to make housing more affordable
Construction and Design
“…Panoramic Interests – San Francisco, California
https://www.panoramic.com/
Panoramic Interests is designing a high-density, prefab, studio apartment building. The prototype, CITYSPACE Studios, is a prefabricated affordable dwelling with units for the homeless that can be easily configured into apartment complexes on existing underutilized city-owned lots.”
"Inside the $1,000 underground ‘sleeping pods’ that a developer wants to build in San Francisco’s super crowded housing market"
- A developer is proposing new housing plans to the city of San Francisco that include 88 50-square-foot underground “sleeping pods.”
- The pods, which are essentially bunk beds stacked together dormitory-style, will be located in windowless subterranean basement levels of two proposed apartment buildings in the Mission District.
- The pods would be priced between $1,000 and $1,375 with curtains instead of doors for privacy.
"Inside the mile-long California homeless camp that is tearing a town apart as Silicon Valley house prices soar"
Residents of the Sonoma homeless camp have lost properties through natural disasters or simply can’t afford California’s prices
On the outskirts of Santa Rosa, the first real city to emerge as you drive through the rolling wine country north of San Francisco, two new settlements hum with life.
...More"Scaling Up: How Superstar Cities Can Grow to New Heights"
For decades, urban policy has focused on troubled cities—those losing population and commercial activity. But in many cities, the era of decline is over; today, we are seeing the emergence of prosperous, economically dynamic cities, often located on America’s coasts.
...More"Panoramic Interests Seeks $80MM JV Equity Investment for First Phase of Apartment Development in Oakland"
San Francisco-based Panoramic Interests is looking for a joint venture equity partner to join its 500 Kirkham apartment project in Oakland.
...More
