Justin DeGuzman’s Post

Urban Public Policy Fellowship (UPPF) Alumni Ryan Fulgham was recently cited in a Crain's Chicago Business article entitled, "The high cost of Chicago rent burdens both tenants and landlords". The article highlights the dwindling options for affordable rental housing for renters of the lowest incomes in Chicago. Fulgham's work is cited in the Preserving Affordable Units section of the article: "Chicago once was home to many single-room occupancy, or SRO, hotels and rooming houses, which catered to people who could afford only a small studio or tiny apartment. Despite a 2014 city ordinance to preserve SROs, the number has continued to decline at a faster rate than projected — particularly in Uptown, where many SROs were located, according to research by Ryan Fulgham of the Institute for Policy & Civic Engagement at the University of Illinois Chicago." Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gnwUiKq8

Did you know the cost of living in St. Louis, Mo, is 6% lower than the national average? This can be compared to Chicago, 25% higher than the national average; New York, 128% higher than the national average; and Los Angeles, 51% higher than the national average. This financial aspect is an important factor to consider when selecting an OT school. #WashUOT #Midwestliving #affordableeducation

As St. George, a rich wealthy, white-dominated suburb detaches from Baton Rouge city, motivated by the need to create a school system that is overall excellent, and not impacted by the almost always C grade performance of the #EBR East Baton Rouge Parish School System, do we call this classism or racism? The newly founded #city now has a great point to prove, standing as a municipality. Considering the bold steps taken by the many residents of St. George, do we expect more detachments and independence of other suburbs? What are the pros and cons of this development, socially and economically? Well, economically, we could predict the outcome considering median income per household and the cost of starting up to exist and develop even more. Socially, we might not be precise. However, we could ascertain the number, type and function of various social infrastructure currently in existence, and whether their coexistence advances a society that is not only unique but fully represented in terms of making consensus on critical decisions. We might say that because St. #George conquered becoming a city, but the next steps are the more important things. I am not being pessimistic but I do hope that they get it right. Important questions the leaders might want to cogitate and deliberate upon should and must include, "What is next for us to do? What are our vision and expectations? How do we measure our development and success? How do we become more representative of the diverse voices and different minds that make up our city? What are the critical lessons learnt from the failures and successes of existing cities within and beyond Louisiana? What do we stand for?" and many more. Again, as St. George declares its independence, which comes next? How else does it impact Baton Rouge as a city and a parish seat? Do we call this #racism or classism? #TheSolutionPeddler #GreenUrbanism Photo Credit: The Advocate

Get a glimpse of the history of American City Planning in this short read.

Gensler’s Robert B Bradford, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB and Hannah Sargent,AIA say that schools are critical spaces that shape the students that learn within their walls and they’re right. With over 15,000 hours spent in school over an academic lifetime, educational spaces are paramount to student success. Join Rob and Hannah as they explore what considerations are necessary in repurposing stranded assets for educational institutions. https://bit.ly/3J0uTAv

I'm excited to announce that my research paper, "Title 25 Policy Review: Windowless Housing in West Campus," received Second Place in the Critical/Persuasive category of the 2023 Undergraduate College Student Writing Flag Contest! This award includes publication of my work in the Texas ScholarWorks database and a scholarship to support my academic endeavors. Within West Campus at the University of Texas at Austin, the rise of windowless housing units is linked to a 2004 zoning change under Title 25 that aimed to promote a high-density, "compact city" development model. While this approach facilitated growth, it resulted in sacrificing the well-being of students who now occupy these windowless units. The review analyzes the policy implications of the Windowless Housing Initiative, a student-led movement advocating for natural light access in all bedrooms of newly constructed buildings. The analysis explores the initiative's potential to improve living conditions, its economic feasibility, and how it might impact various stakeholders, including students, builders, and city officials. The review concludes by recommending specific amendments to Title 25 that could establish humane habitability standards and prioritize the well-being of Austin's residents. I'm grateful for this recognition and excited to contribute to the conversation about responsible urban development! Feel free to reach out if you'd like to discuss the paper or the Windowless Housing Initiative further. Link to my work! https://lnkd.in/gTH-Yfqe #UTAustin #StudentHousing #PolicyReview #WindowlessHousing #TexasScholarWorks

We exist in a world with material limits. And those limits are labelled as crises—social, spatial, political, environmental, knowledge production; the human experience itself. And because the city is a synthesis of values concerning the collective imagination, then imagining the city otherwise appears to be an urgent task. The problem today is that the collective imagination is focused on consumption: commodification, consumerism, self-interest, privatization, spectacle. What is collectively considered appropriate has become thoughtless. Collective imagination is reduced to questions of style and weakened levels of critical engagement in processes that have real impact on our lives. The central challenge is to think and act differently. An “analogue city” is a creative process with a surreal basis. Starting from realistic elements of the city based on memory — the experienced city, the critical potential of the analogical city provides the conditions to discover reasons and analogics other than those of consumption. The challenge then becomes making real space for those ideas. Finding the right time + place. Can't overstate the significance and/or timeliness of the University presence in Surrey. Their collective imagination will ultimately write the future history of City Centre. #Kwantlen Polytechnic University #Simon Fraser University #The University of British Columbia

The City is looking to dispose of approximately 9 acres of land, which is improved with an approximate 150,000 SQ/FT school that the Board of Education recently turned back over to the City for disposition for redevelopment. The City of Nashua has spent the better part of two years studying this land area taking the opportunity to engage the community and solicit their input on what type of redevelopment would “fit” and what “makes” sense for the neighborhood. The City of Nashua’s Board of Aldermen recently expressed a desire to see a portion of the land being redeveloped for affordable housing with an eye toward a low-income housing tax credit project taking place. As this is a large site where a mixed-income and mixed-use development program is preferred. A master developer skilled in working with various end users who can plan, finance, construct a development would be welcomed (not a master developer that would hold an option and seek to sell pieces off). A community asset the City is interested in preserving is the Keefe Auditorium, an arts and cultural destination that could be either maintained as a stand-alone structure or attached to another use. The City is open and agnostic to “how” the Keefe Auditorium is preserved, but would prefer to see proposals that keeps this community value in mind. Take A Look... Reach Out If You Have A Question... https://lnkd.in/eAez94Wi City of Nashua, New Hampshire

Interesting angle on the ol’ “town and gown” dynamic: University as anchor tenant to help spur #UrbanRevitalization. Couple key quotes: - "To work, a university can’t just be IN downtown, it needs to become OF downtown, putting the needs of the city first." - "Duke’s strategy was to catalyze redevelopment, not monopolize it. Instead of buying a building, they offered to lease space in it, contingent on another tenant leasing a space as well." I also appreciated the balanced tone of the piece (e.g. the very last paragraph: “Economic development will always be a game of tradeoffs,” and the acknowledgment of challenges around maintaining #HousingAffordability). Great stuff. I look forward to more from Southern Urbanism and the Duke Initiative for Urban Studies. Check it out: https://lnkd.in/guqfghsH

Much of what is now part of the Creighton university campus was streets upon streets of beautiful homes. #vintagerealestate #propertytransformation #retrorealestate #timelessproperties #beforeandafter #midtown #propertyevolution #classicrealestate #legacyproperties