Annual Conference 2020

Thank you to everyone who attended our annual conference!

 

Links to presenter slides for each session can be found below.

February 28, 2020
8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Portland State University
Native American Student and Community Center
710 SW Jackson St, Portland, OR 97201

Housing is just one part of a set of broader, systemic issues that affect household cost burdens and access to opportunity. An affordable housing unit located far afield from employment or educational prospects--requiring car ownership and long commutes-- is less valuable that an affordable housing unit located near transit and in a walkable and bikeable neighborhood. How can communities across the region and state continue to find ways to locate affordable housing strategically and equitably - and capture the value of a well-planned, multi-modal, and expanding transit system? We'll tackle these issues head-on in HLA's 11th annual conference.

Conference Agenda:

8:00 AM - 8:30 AM - Registration

8:30 AM - 8:40 AM - Opening Remarks

8:40 AM - 9:45 AM - Keynote Speaker

Naomi Iwasaki, President, Naomi Iwasaki Consulting; Former Deputy Director, Investing in Place (Presentation Slides)

Naomi Iwasaki has committed her career to uplifting community voice and equity in public sector projects. Most recently, Naomi worked as Deputy Director of Investing in Place, a Los Angeles-based transportation policy and equity nonprofit. She also served as the Director of Neighborhood Services and Great Streets in the Office of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, overseeing eight City departments and the Great Streets Initiative, and at Community Health Councils (CHC), analyzing transportation and transit-oriented development policies to advocate for improved health and mobility access for residents of South Los Angeles.

9:45 AM - 10:00 AM - Break

10:00 AM - 11:15 AM - Middle Housing: Relieving the Cost Burden of Housing and Transportation

Take a look at emerging trends, from microretail to middle housing. How do these trends affect land use planning? How can they support transit ridership in the context of station area planning and TOD? What can policy makers and transit agencies do to link transportation and housing decisions? Explore case studies that illustrate opportunities for medium-density development. Learn about middle-housing zoning and land use policies. How can they support transit ridership? Where do they fit in to your goals of mixed-income communities and equitable TOD? A mix of strategies you can use in your own region.

 11:15 AM - 11:20 AM - Break

11:20 AM - 12:15 PM - Development and Transportation Case Studies

  • Rob Zako, Executive Director, Better Eugene-Springfield Transportation (BEST), research associate with the Sustainable Cities Institute at the University of Oregon. (Presentation Slides)

    How can improvements in transportation support community development goals, especially in less urbanized areas? Rob Zako will present a case study from the City of Eugene on the River Road-Santa Clara Neighborhood Plan, which aims to guide development in two neighborhoods. A major focus of the effort is River Road, which the City of Eugene has identified as a key corridor for future development and as a candidate for a future EmX bus rapid transit line. Dr, Zako will discuss opportunities and challenges for advancing community goals through this process.

  • Masaye Hoshide, Senior Housing Construction Coordinator, Portland Housing Bureau (Presentation Slides)

    This session will take a closer look into Portland Housing Bureau's role throughout the site selection process for affordable housing development. We will examine 3 local projects to illustrate the transportation issues that come up for developers, such as what triggers HUD Review, acoustical mitigation, environmental hurdles, or city infrastructure issues, and provide potential proactive solutions to these problems

12:15 PM - 1:00 PM - Lunch

1:00 PM - 1:10 PM - President’s Remarks and Presentation of Ed Sullivan Award

The recipient of this year's award is Taylor Smiley Wolfe, former Policy Director for Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek and current Planning and Policy Director for Home Forward.

1:15 PM - 2:15 PM - Reading the Past, Planning the Future: Portland’s History of Racist Zoning (Presentation Slides)

  • Ryan Curren, Project Manager, Bureau of Planning and Sustainability
  • Allan Lazo, Executive Director, Fair Housing Council of Oregon

Ryan and Allan will present on the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability’s 2019 report the  “Historical Context of Racist Planning.”The report includes an overview of racist planning practices in Portland and provides grounds for framing the City’s obligations to affirmatively further fair housing. Mr. Curren and Mr. Lazo will discuss the planning practices have led to racial segregation and other discriminatory impacts on communities of color in Portland and current efforts to undo past harms.

2:15 PM - 2:30 PM - Break

2:30 PM - 3:55 PM - Planning for Housing and Equitable Communities in the Southwest Corridor

  • Dave Unsworth, Director of Project Development and Permitting, TriMet (Presentation Slides)
  • Angel Falconer, City Council President, City of Milwaukie
  • Sean Farrelly, Redevelopment Manager, City of Tigard (Presentation Slides)
  • Diane Linn, Executive Director, Proud Ground

The Southwest Corridor is a planned high-capacity transit line through Portland to the southwest suburbs of Tigard and Tualatin, with 12 stations along a 12 mile route. Once built, the light rail line could carry 43,000 passengers a day by 2035. This panel will address questions around planning for the corridor, including how it might spur the development of new housing, and how benefits from this infrastructure project might be distributed. TriMet will discuss the planning process to date and Proud Ground will address opportunities for affordable housing along the route. Milwaukie will discuss lessons learned from previous development of the Orange Line light rail, and Tigard will look at future impacts on the city from new transit connections.

3:55 PM - 4:00 PM Closing Remarks

Conference registration includes coffee/light breakfast, lunch, and snacks.

AICP and CLE credits will be made available for this conference

Thank you to our generous sponsors