For the 2017 HUD Innovation in Affordable Housing Competition I was invited to join a group from NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate. Our proposal was selected as one of four national finalists to present in Washington DC. 

The challenges were many. Asked to provide innovative solutions to chronic problems at Woodhill Homes in Cleveland Ohio, we devised solutions that integrated design and financing. First the master planned site, built in 1930, needed to be physically and economically connected back to the city grid to promote healthier transit, commerce and sense of community. With a combination of rehab and new construction we devised a modular building system that cut costs and displacement time. Each unit featured transitional winter garden spaces where domestic social actives were connected with the interior courtyards, elevating light and air quality but also the social presence of the development. Financially, we hybridized the RAD program to create an equity system where residents can earn real ownership of their units as a means to incentivize participation in the overall heath of the new neighborhood.