Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/21474

The Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS) is administered by the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). It is a campus-wide initiative that harnesses the expertise of UMD faculty and the energy and ingenuity of UMD students to help Maryland communities become more environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable. PALS is designed to provide innovative, low-cost assistance to local governments while creating real-world problem-solving experiences for University of Maryland graduate and undergraduate students.

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    The State of Affordable Housing in Brunswick, MD
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2023-12) Anderson, Will; Edmondson-Deigh, Kaya-Nadine; Lehman, Erin; Pearson-Merkowitz, Shanna
    Brunswick is a rapidly growing city in rural Maryland that needs an affordable housing stock to keep up with its population growth. We examine if and how an Inclusionary Zoning program in the city could be used to create affordable housing units and how it would assist the city in its goal of a more integrated community. We will evaluate if an Inclusionary Zoning program would be appropriate, and we make specific recommendations for city policy. Mixed-income housing is one potential tool to provide affordable housing options to Brunswick residents. Several key factors in planning mixed income housing are evaluated, including the allocation of units to different income levels, proximity among income levels, density and housing type, tenure, and duration. Finally, we discuss why mixed income housing is right for Brunswick, and how planners can make it attractive to both subsidized and market rate occupants. Subsequently, we discuss state and federal opportunities for affordable housing, such as Community Development Block Grants and active grant opportunities through the Notice of Funding Opportunities. We highlight a federal program that provides funding for affordable senior housing. We also discuss how the support of nonprofit organizations is beneficial to this process. Finally, we end with final recommendations for Brunswick.
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    Maryland’s Missing Middle Housing
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2024-05) Eldadah, Samaa; Carter, Niambi; Dawkins, Casey
    As Maryland localities struggle to meet the demand for a diversity of housing types at a range of income levels, the predominance of detached single-family zoning constrains available land for building new housing and limits the expansion of the housing supply. In this context, local governments have considered zoning change in detached single-family neighborhoods to better accommodate missing middle housing. As of May 2024, however, there have been no significant zoning changes to accommodate missing middle housing in single-family neighborhoods. However, counties are planning for future upzoning initiatives to increase density in residential neighborhoods through comprehensive plans. This report compiles lessons learned from four counties—Montgomery, Frederick, Anne Arundel, and Howard—about successes and challenges in preparing for upzoning to accommodate missing middle housing. These counties employ a range of strategies to address the market and political challenges to upzoning. Lessons learned from counties include using small area planning and zoning overlays, building political will through extensive stakeholder engagement, and offering incentives to developers to build missing middle housing.
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    Affordable Housing in Brunswick, MD
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2023-12) Anderson, Will; Edmondson-Deigh, Kaya-Nadine; Lehman, Erin; Pearson-Merkowitz, Shanna
    Brunswick is a rapidly growing city in rural Maryland that needs an affordable housing stock to keep up with its population growth. We examine if and how an Inclusionary Zoning program in the city could be used to create affordable housing units and how it would assist the city in its goal of a more integrated community. We will evaluate if an Inclusionary Zoning program would be appropriate, and we make specific recommendations for city policy. Mixed-income housing is one potential tool to provide affordable housing options to Brunswick residents. Several key factors in planning mixed income housing are evaluated, including the allocation of units to different income levels, proximity among income levels, density and housing type, tenure, and duration. Finally, we discuss why mixed income housing is right for Brunswick, and how planners can make it attractive to both subsidized and market rate occupants. Subsequently, we discuss state and federal opportunities for affordable housing, such as Community Development Block Grants and active grant opportunities through the Notice of Funding Opportunities. We highlight a federal program that provides funding for affordable senior housing. We also discuss how the support of nonprofit organizations is beneficial to this process. Finally, we end with final recommendations for Brunswick.