Community benefit or conflict? A neighborhood fund and a Boston city councilor’s role in it.
The proposal called for converting the historic but derelict Alexandra Hotel in the South End into a 70-unit condominium tower. To build good will in the neighborhood, the developers committed to making a six-figure “community benefits” donation. The recipient? An obscure nonprofit, District 7 Community Fund Inc., the only known type of community benefits fund in Boston set up to benefit a single city council district.
Louisville Launches ‘Anti-Displacement Tool’
The city of Louisville will begin using a new algorithmic tool to assess the potential for displacement of proposed housing projects, according to a Shelterforce article. “The tool analyzes whether a given project meets the neighborhood’s housing needs and income levels, ensuring that rents match local incomes. If the development does not meet these standards, then the city cannot subsidize it.” City officials hope the tool will make development more equitable and ensure that city funding does not contribute to the displacement of long-term residents.
‘Anti-Displacement Tool’ to Direct City Funding to Projects that Won’t Price Out Residents
The City of Louisville will soon begin using a newly developed algorithmic tool that aims to stop city funding from going to housing projects that would displace local residents. The tool was mandated by a tenant-led 2023 law and, after a year of development by researchers at Boston University, was approved for use in November 2024. Now, it’s ready to be deployed on upcoming development proposals.
Can Louisville’s New ‘Anti-Displacement Tool’ Redirect City Funds Toward Affordable Housing?
The City of Louisville, Kentucky, will soon begin using a newly-developed algorithmic tool that aims to stop city funding from going to housing projects that would displace local residents. The tool was mandated by a tenant-led 2023 law and, after a year of development by researchers at Boston University, was approved for use in November 2024. Now, it’s ready to be deployed on upcoming development proposals.
Unity Group Backs Anti-Displacement Procedure For New Projects; Asks City Council Return To 6 PM Meetings
In addition to Louisville’s legislative approach, Boston University’s Initiative on Cities (IOC) has developed an anti-displacement tool that offers another way to protect vulnerable communities. The tool is designed to assess the potential risks of displacement caused by new development. It works by gathering key details of a proposed project – such as the number of housing units, projected rent prices, and the characteristics of the surrounding area – and running them through a model that evaluates the likelihood of displacement. Based on the displacement risk, the tool helps determine whether a development project meets specific requirements, like including affordable housing units, to mitigate that risk.
BU’s Initiative on Cities Builds a Tool for Fighting Displacement
Activist Jessica Bellamy owns the house where she grew up, in the historically Black neighborhood of Smoketown near downtown Louisville, Ky. Around 2020, she says, she began planning a modest renovation, but none of the local contractors wanted the job because they were all booking more profitable projects in the neighborhood. Smoketown was under strong gentrification pressure that would soon spread to other historically Black neighborhoods nearby.
BU’s Metrobridge Initiative on Cities Program Releases Gillette Site Existing Conditions Analysis
The Fort Point Neighborhood Association (FPNA) in collaboration with the West Broadway Neighborhood Association has partnered with Boston University first via their Metrobridge Initiative on Cities Program to support the community as we prepare to engage the City of Boston and Procter & Gamble in discussions about the redevelopment of the 31-acre Gillette manufacturing site in our neighborhood
Is the new anti-gentrification legislation in Louisville a model for global cities?
The housing crisis is often framed as a straightforward shortage of housing of any type, meaning any new supply is seen as good. But in Louisville, Kentucky as in many other places, the picture is really more nuanced. Every type of development does not benefit every type of resident.
How Louisville plans to keep residents from being priced out of their neighborhoods
A tool aimed at preventing public dollars from funding developments that could displace residents received unanimous support from the Louisville Metro Council on Thursday, to cheers of support in the crowd from members of the Louisville Tenants Union.
Louisville Advances the Country’s Strongest Planning Tool to Mitigate Displacement
Led by the Initiative on Cities at Boston University, Loretta Lees (Boston University), Kenton Card (University of Minnesota and Boston University) and Andre Comandon (University of Southern California) developed a new tool to be implemented by the Louisville Metro Government to guide decisions about residential investments. The tool is the result of a collaboration with a tenant union, government officials, and Councilmember Jecorey Arthur to implement the policy.