Although urban redevelopment projects have created new development in the DC region, including more low-income housing, these efforts have also reinforced patterns of racial segregation and economic exclusion. As we face today’s housing affordability crisis and crumbling infrastructure, here are key lessons on planning, technology, and community engagement.
DC has set ambitious targets for expanding affordable housing across the city. Earlier this year, Mayor Bowser directed city agencies to create 36,000 new housing units—12,000 of them for low-income residents—by 2025. The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments has called upon other jurisdictions in our region to join in setting targets for production and affordability.
Colocated human service providers—those sharing a space—often reap benefits in property management, administrative services, and collaborative opportunities. Colocating service providers at the Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus (THEARC) in DC’s Ward 8 shows that intentional colocation produces potentially notable effects on the health and well-being of community participants who cross-utilize the services.
No comprehensive national database of zoning limits exists, but a machine learning approach has the potential to create a first-of-its-kind national database of zoning restrictions. We used machine learning to accurately predict zoning density in DC and Montgomery and Arlington Counties.
School districts face difficult decisions around overcrowding, school boundaries, and racial and socioeconomic integration. Our Education Data Explorer puts pertinent data on schools, districts, and colleges in the hands of stakeholders, who, regardless of their statistical training, can make evidence-based decisions to help improve outcomes for all students.
