New Updates on The Edge

New on The Edge

Message from PD&R Leadership:
HUD's Research Capacity at 50
On September 9, 1965, President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed legislation that brought HUD into existence. In celebration of HUD's 50th anniversary, Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research Katherine O'Regan reflects on PD&R's role at HUD and the role of research within the department. Moving forward, PD&R is focused on building its internal research capacity and its ability to address policy questions and concerns quickly.

Research:
Impacts of Housing and Services Interventions for Homeless Families
HUD's recent report, the Family Options Study: Short-Term Impacts of Housing and Services Interventions for Homeless Families, follows 2,282 randomly selected families who were assigned to homelessness interventions from emergency shelters across 12 sites between September 2010 and January 2012. The study provides a basis for comparing the relative effectiveness of housing and service interventions that communities may employ in addressing family homelessness.

In Practice:
Celadon at 9th and Broadway: Maximizing the Potential of an Affordable Housing Site
The Celadon provides 250 affordable studio and one-bedroom units and retail space in a transit-rich San Diego neighborhood that's experiencing rising rents. With 88 project-based vouchers, the development ensures that local seniors and youth aging out of foster care will be able to remain in their neighborhood. A model for other sustainable projects on tight infill locations, the building's small site, formerly a parking lot, has forced a number of creative solutions in this 17-story building.

Trending:
Using Public Land to Defray the Cost of Affordable Housing
Affordable housing for low- and middle-income families has become a concern in cities across the country, as high demand for rental housing has often resulted in rapidly rising rents. A report released by the National Housing Conference's Center for Housing Policy, in conjunction with the Washington, DC district council of the Urban Land Institute, analyzes a strategy that utilizes public land to lower costs for the development of mixed-income and affordable homes.

Policy Update:
Obstacles, Solutions, and Self-Determination in Indian Housing Policy
Native Americans nationwide are more likely to live in crowded, physically inadequate, and unaffordable homes, when compared with the U.S. as a whole. The federal government has a legal obligation to promote the welfare of Native Americans in Indian Country, which it fulfills through a self-determination framework. Efforts to improve housing conditions in Indian Country, however, are complicated by factors such as remote locations, weak tribal economies, and restrictions on the use of tribal land.