Daniel Parolek is an architect, urbanist and the founder of Opticos Design, which has been working in urban placemaking and master planning for two decades. Daniel is best known for framing the idea of ‘missing middle housing’ just as the critical absence of affordable housing was becoming a major planning issue for cities nationwide. The ‘missing middle’ can be broadly … [Read more...] about The Missing Middle.
Development
Urban economics.
Simply put, urban economics is the study of buildings and cities and why they develop the way they do. Urban economics help us to determine why certain places are so much more vital than others through the exploration of land-use, zoning, employment patterns, and the price of land. Over the last century cities have experienced massive change. With the arrival of the … [Read more...] about Urban economics.
One room at a time.
Atticus LeBlanc is the founder of Padsplit, a technology platform dedicated to affordable housing, with no barriers of entry. Atticus, who studied architecture and urban studies at Yale, has been an affordable housing advocate and real estate investor for over a decade, with a company that owns and manages over 550 affordable residential units. But he founded Padsplit with a … [Read more...] about One room at a time.
Quadruple the pace.
Housing shortages are not a new thing in California. California has suffered from housing shortages since the 1970s. By 2018, the shortfall was estimated to be at around 3 - 4 million. This shortfall is at all levels of affordability but especially so for low- and moderate- income people. According to the annual report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the … [Read more...] about Quadruple the pace.
Manufacturing change.
Green builder, Scott Flynn, co-founded indieDwell with Pete Gombert four years ago “to change the building industry by offering high quality, sustainable and healthy homes to underserved communities." In the early 1990s, Scott worked as a carpenter’s apprentice building and remodeling homes, and even after he graduated from college as a chemical engineer, he continued to do … [Read more...] about Manufacturing change.