Connectivity is now fundamental to care delivery. Without it, rural patients and providers cannot access electronic health records, participate in telehealth, or use remote monitoring tools, limiting the very innovations the program is designed to advance.
HR&A evaluated land value capture mechanisms for the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), delivering a comprehensive implementation strategy and dynamic assessment tool to generate sustainable revenue for SANDAG's Regional Infrastructure Plan. Our work included financial modeling for two priority transit projects and produced an actionable roadmap that helps SANDAG and local partner agencies leverage value capture opportunities to fund critical infrastructure while supporting increased housing supply throughout the region.
HR&A worked with the Los Angeles Department of City Planning to design a comprehensive incentive zoning system for Downtown Los Angeles as part of the DTLA 2040 Downtown Community Plan update, creating a three-tier framework that balances development feasibility with public benefits and will generate affordable housing, public open space, and community facilities while establishing clear expectations for future growth.
HR&A advised Vanderbilt University in developing a plan to transform 40 acres of underutilized campus land into an innovation district that will catalyze Nashville's innovation ecosystem and support research needs. We supported the university to develop a vision and land use program for a dynamic mixed-use neighborhood that strengthens both academic excellence and regional economic development. HR&A managed the master planning process and is currently supporting Vanderbilt in selection of a development partner to move the project towards implementation.
As American cities grapple with persistently high office vacancies and an escalating housing crisis, a new report provides critical insights into the potential for converting office buildings into residential spaces. “Understanding Office-to-Residential Conversion: Lessons from Six U.S. Case Studies” examines conversion activity in Houston, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Stamford, and Winston-Salem, offering a roadmap for policymakers and developers navigating this complex process.
Change is a natural phenomenon in any neighborhood – families move in and out, businesses come and go, new immigrant groups bring different languages, cultures, and cuisines. When rents begin to grow faster than the incomes of residents, however, the resulting economic pressure can force people from their homes before they are ready to leave. The result is displacement that harms individuals, families, schools, and communities.
On behalf of SPUR and ULI San Francisco, HR&A Advisors partnered with Gensler to analyze the economic feasibility of converting vacant downtown office buildings into residential units. This first-of-its-kind study in San Francisco -- ultimately incorporated into SPUR’s October 2023 “From Workspace to Homebase” report -- provided stakeholders with actionable insights into the financial challenges and policy interventions necessary for successful conversions that could address both downtown vacancy and the city’s housing shortage.
The City of Yes for Housing Opportunity is a sweeping zoning reform aimed at tackling New York City’s housing crisis. Approved by the City Council on December 5, 2024, the initiative aims to enable more housing in every neighborhood by increasing allowances, flexibility, and incentives for diverse and affordable housing types, while reducing regulatory hurdles for development and conversions. The City estimates that over 80,000 units will be created through these changes.
HR&A conducted a comprehensive impact analysis for Airbnb, examining the effects of New York City's Local Law 18, which effectively banned most short-term rentals in September 2023. Through pre- and post-enforcement data analysis, HR&A demonstrated that the law significantly reduced short-term rental income for homeowners who relied on Airbnb rentals, reduced the net new economic activity that many Airbnb guests brought to the outer boroughs, and reduced the availability of accommodations for tourists – already in short supply.
HR&A prepared the Syracuse region to absorb housing demand from Micron's $100 billion chip plant—the largest private investment in New York State history—through comprehensive market analysis across six counties that identified optimal growth areas and recommended strategies ensuring this transformative investment strengthens communities rather than creating displacement.
HR&A collaborated with Brookings Metro, Gensler, and Cara Eckholm Studio to develop a comprehensive study on office-to-residential conversions across six U.S. cities for the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This research provides cities with actionable strategies to address housing shortages, repurpose distressed office markets, and revitalize downtowns through data-driven conversion approaches.
HR&A Advisors is co-leading Pittsburgh's first citywide comprehensive plan, a two-year initiative establishing policies that will guide how the city will grow and change through 2050. Working closely with the Department of City Planning and a team of local and national partners, we are helping Pittsburgh set clear goals for housing, jobs, transportation, land use, and climate resilience.
Eastchester Gardens residents faced a pivotal decision about converting their development from public housing to project-based vouchers. HR&A served as Resident Advisors with LISC NY and Public Works Partners, providing technical expertise helping the Resident Review Committee understand complex developer proposals and make an informed decision about the future of their homes.
In 2024, Los Angeles County voters approved Measure A, a historic half-cent sales tax generating over $380 million annually for affordable housing and homelessness prevention. HR&A developed the inaugural Expenditure Plan and Regional Coordination Plan for the Los Angeles County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA), creating frameworks that enable 13 regional agencies to deploy this permanent funding source while maintaining regional alignment toward the goal of producing 9,000 new affordable homes over the next five years.
HR&A helped to transform San Joaquin County's approach to affordable housing investment by guiding creation of a dedicated Housing Trust Fund. Our work with the countywide San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG) evaluated affordable housing needs, alternative governance models, and funding sources. This resulted in establishment of a new nonprofit, tax-exempt subsidiary of SJCOG that has secured new financial resources and is planning to make its first project funding awards in 2026.
HR&A guided Battle Creek through comprehensive housing planning to address existing needs and prepare for Ford's $2.5 billion battery plant. Our Housing Framework and Action Plan for the City, Battle Creek Unlimited, and the WK Kellogg Foundation prioritized investments and programs while advancing funding discussions with the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.
Rising rents and home prices threatened Chattanooga's affordability during a period of steady growth. HR&A's Housing Action Plan provided the City with strategic tools addressing rental affordability, homeownership access, and homelessness prevention while building ecosystem capacity to advance equity for all Chattanoogans.
Norfolk's newly formed Department of Housing and Community Development is positioning the city to deliver fair housing outcomes through comprehensive planning and innovative programs. HR&A is conducting a citywide housing study, developing NDHCD's strategic plan, and providing technical assistance on initiatives including inclusionary zoning policy and an affordable housing trust fund that will sustainably deploy flexible funding for local programs.
HR&A equipped El Paso with a comprehensive roadmap to address its housing affordability crisis. Working with the Housing Authority of the City of El Paso and TAG Associates, our regional needs assessment and production plan analyzed barriers to both multifamily and single-family development while recommending solutions that positioned City Council to increase affordable housing investment.
HR&A developed an Affordable Housing Investment Strategy for Athens-Clarke County that will more than double the jurisdiction's affordable housing production. Our needs assessment, funding analysis, and stakeholder engagement identified strategies to deploy public dollars more effectively, moving beyond $1.7 million in annual federal entitlements to create local funding sources that increase flexibility and impact.
HR&A collaborated with JusticeLA and Designing Justice+Designing Spaces to advance transformative restorative justice initiatives through LA County's Care First Community Investment program. We developed a concept plan for a pilot campus in Long Beach and co-authored a 2022 concept paper proposing the FLOW Youth Center, a prototype for juvenile restorative justice that disrupts traditional incarceration models by prioritizing community-based mental health, substance abuse treatment, and holistic wellness programming.
The City of Austin and LifeWorks engaged HR&A and Good River Partners to support development of Dismantling the Foster Care to Homelessness Pipeline in Austin, Texas, a landmark 10-point plan to create 2,000 new housing opportunities for young people. Our work responded to a significant increase in youth homelessness in Austin over the past five years.
HR&A collaborated with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health to design and implement the County’s Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Housing Program. Within 12 months, the original MHSA funds were committed to 30 projects, and together with $131 million of supplemental funding added during subsequent years, the County deployed a total of $243 million to fund 92 developments with 5,400 units, 1,700 of which were targeted to vulnerable populations.
HR&A worked with United Way to develop an implementation plan for their initial strategic framework for a continuum of issues related to affordable housing and homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. HR&A conducted extensive stakeholder outreach and analysis to create actionable and innovative strategies to reduce housing instability and homelessness across the region.
The City of Stamford, which has grown over 10.5% in the past decade, partnered with HR&A to address its affordable housing needs with the Stamford Housing Affordability Plan, which updated zoning policies and launched a Housing Trust Fund. Recognized for excellence in community engagement by the Connecticut Chapter American Planning Association and as the best among 17 local housing plans by Fairfield County’s Center for Housing Opportunity, the plan aims to create or renovate 1,000 affordable apartments by 2025.
HR&A helped New Hope Housing multiply its impact combating homelessness in Houston and Harris County. Our comprehensive strategic plan and implementation support enabled the organization to triple annual project delivery, launch new service lines, and develop GIS-based tools that systematically identify competitive development sites for serving vulnerable populations.
Disrupting the cycle between homelessness and criminal legal system involvement starts with improving access to housing. HR&A conducted research for Enterprise Community Partners Southeast's Housing as a Pathway to Justice effort in Atlanta, mapping seven critical inflection points and recommending strategies for Enterprise to leverage its position as developer, convener, and policy expert.
HR&A worked with the Maine Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation to develop a study to understand housing needs and deficits along with their impacts on Maine’s economy. Our study found that 76,400–84,300 new homes need to be built within the next 7 years to maintain Maine’s economic growth.
Since 1999, HR&A has helped the LA County Development Authority refine and administer its annual affordable housing developer Notice of Funding Availability (“NOFA”) loan programs. HR&A has provided financing reviews, loan underwriting, and project coordination, and other advisory services that have contributed to over 100 affordable housing developments across the county, including nearly 1,000 new affordable homes since 2021.
On behalf of Westchester County’s Department of Planning, HR&A Advisors designed and implemented a new $90M fund to allocate the County’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. The Flex Fund is projected to support the development of approximately 1,500 new affordable homes across the county.
HR&A is proud to support the Center for Fair Futures’ new report, Housing Justice for Young People Aging out of Foster Care in New York City, which lays out a five-year plan to provide 800 new homes for youth exiting foster care. The findings in this report present an opportunity for policymakers, service providers, and mission-driven investors to come together to prevent homelessness for a uniquely at-risk population.
Recognizing the opportunity the City has to invest in its existing housing stock to preserve affordability, the San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC) engaged HR&A and National Housing Trust (NHT) to create the Affordable Housing Preservation Study — a robust inventory and projections of San Diego’s existing affordable housing and a policy framework designed to preserve affordability.
In response to input from residents, affordable housing advocates and developers, the City of New Haven engaged HR&A to develop an inclusionary zoning policy that ensures long-term affordability, inclusive growth, and thriving neighborhoods. Over 50 affordable homes have been approved since the ordinance’s approval in 2022.
HR&A developed an interactive dashboard for the Florida Apartment Association to track Florida’s rapidly growing housing needs at the county and metro-area level and showcases cost drivers and benefits of incentive tools to highlight housing gaps for lower-income renters.
HR&A developed an Affordable Housing Plan for the City of Charlottesville that centers racial equity and regional collaboration to guide the city’s investments in affordable housing programs and policies. Charlottesville has made significant progress on the Plan’s three major initiatives including: dedicating $10M a year to affordable housing, building inclusive governance throughout the City’s housing ecosystem, and adopting progressive, inclusionary zoning reforms — all of which are shaping a denser, more economically diverse Charlottesville.
HR&A helped designed a statewide shared appreciation revolving loan fund in California to provide down payment assistance for lower income borrowers by analyzing housing and homeownership trends across 10 regions in the state and set the potential lending parameters, resulting in over 2,000 new homeowners benefitting from the program.
As part of the Residential Retrofits for Energy Equity (R2E2) partnership, HR&A is providing training and capacity building assistance for awardees of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Buildings Upgrade Prize (Buildings UP). Separate from this work, R2E2 provides technical assistance to state and local governments, community-based organizations, and other entities to jumpstart energy retrofit programs for both single family and multifamily low- to moderate-income housing (“LMI” housing), especially in frontline communities.
HR&A is supporting program design and implementation for Amazon’s Housing Equity Fund, a $2 billion commitment to preserve existing housing and create inclusive housing developments through below-market loans and grants to developers, public agencies, and organizations. HR&A led negotiation and underwriting efforts for over 9,000 new affordable homes in the Washington DC area and will continue to support Amazon with their additional commitment of $1.4 billion.
