Archive

January 2018

Regional Housing Initiative (RHI) has operating subsidies available for competitive housing developments in metropolitan Chicago.

BRicK Partners is helping manage the RHI initiative with the region’s public housing authorities and other key partners. Launched by the Metropolitan Planning Council as a pilot more than 10 years ago, RHI is now moving forward under the leadership of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP). In 2011, HUD funded a three year initiative focused on refining and expanding RHI, and now those lessons learned continue to be institutionalized as new tools to support CMAP’s GoTo2040 Plan. The final report on the pilot has been completed and submitted to HUD, and you can click here to download the report.

March 14, 2017

The annual Governor’s Housing Conference, co-hosted by the Illinois Housing Council and Illinois Housing Development Authority, was held at the Hyatt on March 13 and March 14th. BRicK’s Robin Snyderman served as a panelist in the Policy Session on “Valuing Affordable Housing: The Impact and Benefits” on March 14. Click here to learn more.

March 7, 2017

As the Twin Cities LISC office hosted its fourth community forum on “Getting the Big Picture Right,” BRicK’s Robin Snyderman served as a panelist related to Mixed-Income and Transit-Oriented Development. Click here to learn more.

September 28, 2016

BRicK Partners participated in the West Cook County Fair Housing Training, hosted by the Chicago Area Fair Housing Alliance and the Oak Park Regional Housing Center. The training covered new HUD guidance on Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, the County’s new Tiered Compliance Model, and fair housing barriers and opportunities in West Cook County.

September 22, 2016

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) hosted an online webinar, following up on the practitioner convening for regional housing mobility programs and initiatives that took place at its headquarters in Washington, DC, in January 2016, to educate each other on strategies and best practices in creating a successful program. BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman moderated the panel discussion, including panelists such as Phil Tegeler of Poverty & Race Research Action Council (PRRAC), Daniel Rinzler of California Housing Partnership Corporation, Charles Homer of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Elizabeth Kneebone of the Brookings Institution.

April 22, 2016

The Illinois Association of Municipal Management Assistants (IAMMA) held its 20th annual conference, entitled Working Towards the Future Through Collaboration at Northeast Illinois University in Naperville. Breakout sessions discussed development of an IT consortium, collaboration during fiscal crisis, cost savings and consolidation, and BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman and Beth Dever led a discussion on building capacity through collaboration. Click here to learn more.

February 5, 2016

In St. Louis, MO, BRicK Partners participated in a presentation on the experiences of other cities in affirmatively furthering fair housing (AFFH) at a conference sponsored by the City’s Civil Rights Enforcement Agency, entitled “Expanding opportunities and creating equity.” The conference highlighted St. Louis’s efforts to enforce new AFFH regulations and create a more equitable region. Click here to learn more.

July 16, 2015

More Choices for More Families: Sixth National Conference on Housing Mobility

With new and encouraging research evaluating the results of Moving to Opportunity, the timing could not have been better for the Chicago Region to host “More Choices for More Families: Sixth National Conference on Housing Mobility” on July 16 at John Marshall Law School in downtown Chicago, and to feature the leadership of civic organizations and public housing authorities in the Regional Housing Initiative and the HUD-funded Chicago Regional Housing Choice Initiative. Research highlighted in a recent New York Times piece shows that very low-income children who grow up in certain municipalities have better chances of escaping poverty than similar children in other areas. BRicK Partners has been honored to support the regional voucher initiative in Chicagoland and to explore its expansion nationwide, and Robin Snyderman described these experiences in one of the July 16th panels. Click here to view photos and the agenda from the conference.

April 30, 2015

2015 Missouri Housing Summit

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman spoke on a panel with Antonio Riley, Region V Administrator of HUD, and Teresa Hunter, Executive Director, Family Housing Advisory Services, Omaha, NE, discussing the Housing Mobility Program and best practices from the Chicago Regional Housing Choice Initiative. Click here to download the conference agenda.

March 6, 2015

Employer-Assisted Housing a win-win for everyone

An article posted on the Urban Land Institute’s blog, How Housing Matters from February 24, 2015, “When Employers Help with Housing, Winners Emerge,” discussed a number of employer-assisted housing efforts across the country, from Under Armour to T. Rowe Price, and specifically highlighted workforce housing programs in anchor institutions such as Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and Loyola University in Chicago. The article quoted BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman on the benefits of these programs for employers, employees and the surrounding community.

Employer-assisted housing a win-win scenario

“When Employers Help with Housing, Winners Emerge,” an article posted on Urban Land Institute Hawaii’s website on March 6, 2015, discusses the challenges faced by employers in high-cost areas. BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman is quoted regarding the benefits to both employees and employers of employer-assisted housing programs.

December 8, 2014

Urban Institute/Center on Budget and Policy Priorities convening on increasing use of housing vouchers in higher opportunity neighborhoods

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman spoke on jurisdictional barriers. In addition to Ms. Snyderman, the panel featured Barbara Sard, Vice President for Housing Policy of CBPP, and Danielle Bastarache, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Programs and Legislative Initiatives (Acting), Public and Indian Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development. In the large majority of metro areas, more than one PHA administers a Housing Choice Voucher program, and different PHAs often serve neighborhoods of concentrated poverty and opportunity neighborhoods. The panel discussed whether HUD policy changes or other incentives can help overcome these barriers (e.g., revised consortia rule, streamlined portability rule, supporting other regional collaborations).

November 3, 2014

Supportive Housing Provider Association Brown Bag Discussion & Technical Assistance Series

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman spoke on advocacy and communicating with elected officials, neighborhood groups and planning and zoning officials. In addition to Ms. Snyderman, the workshop featured David Pope, former Village President of the Village of Oak Park, two great speakers with a wealth of experience advocating for and leading policies, programs and projects achieving these housing goals. They discussed implementation of projects and/or policy changes that create or enhance housing options for persons with disabilities.

 October 3, 2014


Housing Action Illinois’ 2014 Annual Conference

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman participated in a panel entitled “Using Data for Planning and Impact Analysis” at HAI’s 2014 conference. The panel discussed what data are readily available for housing counselors to use and how to integrate its use into daily operations.

June 26, 2014

NCSHA’s Housing Credit Connect 2014

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman participated in a panel entitled “Advancing Fair Housing with the Credit” at the National Council of State Housing Agencies’ 2014 conference. The panel examined state Housing Credit allocation policies for furthering fair housing, review housing discrimination litigation and discuss strategies for using the Credit in high opportunity areas, for poverty deconcentration, and to achieve racial and economic integration.

June 25, 2014

Summer meeting of the Affordable Housing Investment Council

Karen Muchin introduced Antonio Riley, HUD Midwest Regional Administrator, as the keynote speaker at the AHIC Summer 2014 Members’ Conference in Chicago, IL. Click here to download the conference agenda.

May 15, 2014

DuPage Homeownership Center’s Affordable Housing Breakfast

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman spoke at the tri-annual Affordable Housing Breakfast, a collaboration between DHOC and the Wheaton College Center for Applied Christian Ethics. She gave an update on Regional Solutions to Suburban Housing and Community Development via the Homes for a Changing Region Initiative.

April 23, 2014

2014 Illinois Governor’s Conference on Affordable Housing

BRicK Partners’ Robin Snyderman moderated a panel entitled “Rooftops Required for Retail and Ridership: How Housing Can Anchor Economic Development” at the Illinois Governor’s Conference on Affordable Housing in downtown Chicago. Click here to read the session descriptions.

April 3, 2014

Spring meeting of the Affordable Housing Investment Council

Karen Muchin introduced Elizabeth Kneebone of the Brookings Institution to discuss “Confronting Suburban Poverty” at the AHIC Spring 2014 Members’ Conference in Washington, DC. Click here to download the conference agenda.

February 14, 2014

New Partners for Smart Growth Conference

BRicK Partners moderated a panel entitled “Advancing Regional Equity through Collaboration: Public Housing Agencies and Metropolitan Planning Organizations” at the Smart Growth Conference in Denver, Colorado. Click here to read the HUDuser article resulting from the conference.

November 5th and 6th, 2013

Housing Action Illinois’s annual conference, held in Bloomington, included an update on the Attorney General’s National Foreclosure Settlement awards. Robin Snyderman and Karen Muchin spoke on a panel providing National Foreclosure Settlement (NFS) grantees and others working in affected communities with information regarding the scope of projects funded and updates on implementation procedures and schedules. Representatives from the Attorney General’s office and NFS-funded experts were in attendance to discuss their roles in assisting grantees with their projects. In addition to learning critical information, the session provided an opportunity for grantees and others to put faces to names and to begin the peer-to-peer networking that will be essential for successful program implementation.Click here to download a PDF of presentations.

June 18th, 2013

BRicK Partners moderated Brookings Institution’s Webinar: “Scaling Suburban Community Development Solutions Through Collaborative New Strategies.” 

Click here for more information about the Webinar.

Click here for a summary of the Webinar from MPC.

April 24th, 2013

BRicK Partners participated in a panel entitled “Economic Development and Housing Research” as part of the Illinois Governor’s Conference on Affordable Housing.

April 15th, 2013

BRick Partners participated in a panel on Interjurisdictional Collaboration in metropolitan Chicago at the American Planning Association Conference.

April 3rd, 2013

BRicK was a guest speaker on workforce housing strategies and programs at the Kansas Regional Workforce Housing Summit.

January 22nd, 2013

BRicK Partners moderated a panel with developers attending this Illinois Housing Council event on Strategies for Creating Successful Mixed-Tenancy Developments in Illinois at the Metropolitan Planning Council, in coordination with the Corporation for Supportive Housing.

January 17th, 2013

BRicK Partners and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus present on regional housing solutions at DuPage Homeownership Center Affordable Housing Breakfast.

December 13th, 2012

BRicK Partners moderated a panel at Metropolitan Planning Council roundtable releasing a report it co-authored on Interjurisdictional Collaboration, entitled “Supporting and Sustaining Interjurisdictional Collaboration for Housing and Community Development.”

September 13th, 2012

BRicK Partners presented a keynote address on workforce housing strategies at 2012 Kansas Housing Conference: Bringing Kansas Home.