Author Archives: Niloo Nouri

Last month, we talked about how even “luxury” housing can improve overall housing affordability in a market. In that post, we spoke about a recent study that looked at the downstream effects of a new condominium tower in Honolulu. Today, let’s look at Switzerland.

A Successful Facial Challenge to the City of Patterson’s Impact Fee Regime Offers Key Insights

A quick design tune-up on a real project

The Berkeley City Council unanimously approved the construction of an eight-story housing development on the corner of Virginia Street and Shattuck Avenue at its regular meeting Tuesday. A majority of public commenters expressed concerns about the project’s affordability, government transparency, gentrification, health and safety.

Some nearby residents wanted to block the 110-unit apartment complex, calling it a ‘behemoth’ and ‘monstrosity.’ But council members said they want more housing in North Berkeley.

For decades, Los Angeles business and political figures have focused their attention on creating a sleek, vibrant downtown. The common thought, as the late Eli Broad suggested, has been, “a great city needs a great downtown.”

Regarding “If S.F. Mayor Lurie wants affordability, he should stop taxing new homes at the same rate as cigarettes” (Open Forum, SFChronicle.com, Jan. 27):  I am a retired professor of city planning and an affordable housing expert. I have a few questions about these proposals.

A lawsuit filed last month by a longtime Cambridge developer could upend the way Massachusetts builds affordable housing.

Lawyers for Patrick Barrett are suing the city in the state’s Land Court over its requirement that 20% of the space in major housing developments include affordable units, a policy known as “inclusionary zoning.”

Washington needs to unlock capital through deregulation.

One of the common criticisms of new housing is that it’s designed for rich people and that it does nothing to help the housing situation of average citizens. The YIMBY response to this is, “Well, yes, it does actually, because supply eases overall housing pressures and because of the filtering effect.”