The following are articles and reports on the web that the Community and Economic Development Program at the UNC School of Government shared through social media over the past month. Follow us on twitter or facebook to receive regular updates.
Items of interest related to CED in North Carolina:
Smoky Mountain News provides a good explanation of how and why the Town of Waynesville NC will use the redevelopment area and affordable housing policy to provide housing for low and moderate income persons. http://bit.ly/2T4yUrZ
NextCity reports on Charlotte’s strategic investments in affordable housing and describes the City’s affordable housing policy. It also refers to Durham County’s “smart investments near planned transit” (with the help of DFI). https://t.co/I4hNid1788
Other CED items:
Read Shelterforce’s excellent essay on “How to Fund a Land Banks.” This article dispels the myth that land banks can be self-funded and includes an example of a local government cooperative venture in absence of state legislation. http://bit.ly/2T0v1V2
Authors of this Urban Institute article propose strategies for local leaders to “leverage” Opportunity Zones for community benefit. OZs offer additional returns for investors, but the authors note that investment is likely to flow only to projects that are already viable. https://urbn.is/2CvKGEt
The Urban Institute offers five trends to watch in community and economic development in 2019. https://urbn.is/2Tex6MV
Governing explains how St. Petersburg turns vacant and abandoned properties into affordable housing for low-income persons. This can be done in NC (local govts can foreclose on tax liens and provide subsidized land to developers of low-income housing). http://bit.ly/2B7JpDR
Last month’s edition of “What @sog_ced is reading….”
https://ced.sog.unc.edu/what-sog_ced-is-reading-online-december-2018/ Compiled by Francine Stefan