Author: Maya Brennan

Website: http://howhousingmatters.org

Maya Brennan, vice president of the ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing, is managing editor of the How Housing Matters website. She engages in research and outreach to facilitate a broad range of housing options in thriving communities.

Articles by Maya Brennan

• Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City
  Published on June 27, 2016 in
  In his recently released book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, sociologist and 2016 MacArthur Fellow Matthew Desmond explores life for low-income renters and their landlords in two high-poverty Milwaukee communities. How Housing Matters spoke with Desmond about his research and its implications for housing policy.
• Small-Scale Strategies Promote Affordable Renting in Connecticut
  Published on June 06, 2016 in
  Small apartment buildings are often overlooked or underserved by housing policy and traditional housing and commercial real estate finance mechanisms. Because this housing type is so prevalent in New England and important in the state’s housing stock, the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority has created a three-pronged program to address rental needs at a scale that works for the state’s smaller communities.
• On an Abandoned Texas Airfield, a Mixed-Income Community Takes Off
  Published on March 28, 2016 in
  When the city leaders of Austin, Texas, decided in the late 1990s to move the local airport to a larger tract of land, they faced a vital question: How could the city best use the soon-to-be-abandoned 700 acres (283 ha) of prime land that lay just a few miles northeast of downtown?
• Will U.S. Housing Supply Be Appropriate for Future Demand?
  Published on February 01, 2016 in
  The United States is in the midst of a diversity boom that could rival or even surpass that seen during the baby boom of the last half of the 20th century, demographer William Frey writes in his 2014 book Diversity Explosion. In a question-and-answer session, Frey discusses the implications of changing demographics on U.S. housing.
• A Winning Team in East New York: Housing + Soccer
  Published on December 07, 2015 in
  Soccer is more than just a game in East New York. For hundreds of residents in this low-income Brooklyn neighborhood of New York City, soccer is also seen as a gateway to a better life. Nonprofit groups use the sport to help disadvantaged residents learn critical skills.
• For-Profit Developers Bring Expertise to Affordable Housing
  Published on August 31, 2015 in
  A few developers, such as New York City–based Jonathan Rose Companies (JRCo) and St. Louis–based McCormack Baron Salazar, start with a mission-driven approach to create vibrant communities that give more people a safe and engaging place to call home—and then make sure that the developments also fit with their profit motivation.
• Crime Prevention? It Starts with Design
  Published on August 24, 2015 in
  Simple but powerful techniques can reduce crime and foster healthier living.
• Housing Matters: In the Bronx, an Oasis for Learning
  Published on June 10, 2015 in
  A generation ago, many children in New York City’s Bronx borough were languishing in underperforming schools. Informed by a growing body of research and buoyed by the area’s can-do spirit, community leaders embarked on an ambitious plan to right this wrong. Their meticulous work came to fruition two years ago with the New Settlement Community Campus.
• Improvements to Education—and Housing— Are Game Changers for Atlanta’s Children
  Published on June 01, 2015 in
  The nine-hole golf course at the Charles R. Drew Charter School gets a lot of use during an average school day. That golf is a dedicated subject at a southern school is not exactly remarkable—but how this came to be is. Two decades ago, the golf course was closed—and as decrepit as the East Lake Meadows housing project that sat on its edge.
• The Ripple Effects of Higher-Quality Housing
  Published on November 10, 2014 in
  Through both evidence and anecdotes, panelists at the “How Housing Matters”conference provided further insight into the pivotal role that housing plays in people’s lives.