firefighters mop up a vegetation fire near the intersection of Interstate 8 and Interstate 15 Monday. Photo via @SDFD X

Firefighters extinguished a half-acre brush fire Monday before it reached any structures north of Interstate 8 and east of Interstate 15 in San Diego.

San Diego Fire Rescue Department said the vegetation fire was reported at 11:48 a.m. New Years Day at 4510 Alvarado Canyon Road, near the College area, with firefighters arriving on the scene at noon.

San Diego Fire Department stopped the fire before it reached an apartment building under construction, according to fire officials. Mop operations were being completed.

No injuries were reported and no structures were damaged.

Units assigned included one division chief, two helicopters, five engines, three battalion chiefs, two brush rigs and 42 personnel.

City News Service contributed to this article.

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Crews Quickly Put Out Brush Fire Near Apartment Building Under Construction - Times of San Diego

After four years of municipal review, neighborhood opposition and litigation, construction on a controversial apartment project in the Fruit Belt across from the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is ready to begin.

Symphony Property Management is preparing to start work this month on The Lawrence, a $50 million venture that will bring 132 residential units to Michigan Avenue when it is completed in two years. The company secured $38.15 million in lending for the project through Northwest Bank late last month, plus additional financing from Tompkins Community Bank, enabling BRD Construction to begin work.

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This achievement positions us to break ground in January 2024, realizing our vision of creating an unparalleled living experience in downtown Buffalo, said Symphony owner Timothy Leboeuf.

Plans call for a 129,000-square-foot complex at 983 Michigan Ave., consisting of a five-story wing on Michigan and a four-story wing on Maple, stretching parallel along both streets, with a small connector between them. The complex would include a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom market-rate apartments, with 78 underground parking spaces and 55 more spaces on the medical campus.

The project is designed to provide additional housing options for the area, and is partially aimed at medical students and employees of the medical campus institutions. It will include some fully furnished units with concierge amenities, and will also cater to the needs of long-term visitors of the medical campus.Construction will take 18 to 24 months.

But its been a long and bumpy road to get to this point. I was confident we would get this deal in the ground once we got the approvals from the city, LeBoeuf said. I didnt expect it to take another three years.

Timothy LeBoeufs Symphony Property Management and two affiliates have applied for demolition permits to take down a pair of dilapidated houses on Michigan Avenue and Maple Street.

First proposed in summer 2019, the project quickly met with opposition from some Fruit Belt residents and advocates, who complained about development encroaching on the historic lower-income neighborhood and potentially pushing community members out. They said it would not be affordable to those who live in the neighborhood, and was also too big and imposing, because it violated the Green Code height limits.

The developer responded by tweaking the project plan several times, lowering the height on Maple, shuffling units from one street to the other, pulling back part of the facade, and adding parking, among other changes. Resistance continued, but eventually, what was then a $25 million project won 13 zoning variances including for height and width and then Planning Board approval in June 2020.

Fruit Belt resident Elverna D. Gidney and retired University at Buffalo professor Lorna Peterson quickly sued to block the project, claiming that the city agencies had improperly approved many of the variances and failed to consider proper standards, tests and environmental impacts.

A state judge ruled that Peterson lacked legal standing to sue since she doesnt live in the Fruit Belt, and then eventually dismissed the entire case. Gidney and her attorney, Arthur Giacalone, appealed, but the state Appellate Division upheld the lower court ruling.

Meanwhile, Symphony still needed to acquire one more city-owned property on Maple, on top of 15 parcels it already owned, and the city was now demanding a much higher price after seeing what properties were going for. That was resolved in 2022, with Symphony paying $125,000 for 244 Maple.

Finally, Symphony earlier this year had to demolish a couple of dilapidated houses at 995 Michigan and 240 Maple, which stood in the way.

It didnt hamper the company, LeBoeuf said. Id say we learned a lot through the process, faced each challenge that was thrown at us and are ready to start building.

Reach Jonathan D. Epstein at (716) 849-4478 or jepstein@buffnews.com.

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Construction to begin on Lawrence apartments in Buffalo - Buffalo News

Construction works are ongoing in a new residential area in the Sugovushan settlement. The construction of 5 multi-apartment buildings is being carried out in the neighborhood with a total area of more than 2 hectares, Azernews reports.

In an interview with local media outlets, the project manager Vidadi Hasanov said that each of the buildings in the residential area has five floors. A total of 190 apartments are being built, of which 25 are one-room, 80 are two-room, 75 are three-room, and 10 are four-room apartments.

The floor of the first floor of three buildings has already been concreted, preparatory work is underway on the second floor. In the remaining two buildings, the work on the basement has been completed.

Elevators will be installed in buildings with two entrances each. Each building will have parking for 22 cars in the basement. Heat supply will be carried out with a central boiler system.

Construction of football, sports and children's playgrounds, transformer substations, reservoirs, and other necessary infrastructure facilities is planned in the neighborhood. Wide green strips will also be built here.

It should be recalled that the Sugovushan settlement was liberated from occupation by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces on October 3, 2020, during the Patriotic War.

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Construction of 190-apartment residential neighborhood in Sugovushan continues [PHOTOS] - AzerNews.Az

A New York-based developer came into Connecticut in late 2021 and is trying to stake out a fresh segment of the affordable housing market with three projects.

As it begins constructing what it calls an attainably priced 70-unit apartment building in Cheshire, Vessel Technologies is exploring chances for a 42-unit version in Manchester and working to revive its plan for another 42-unit one in Granby.

Vessel assembles prefabricated buildings of virtually identical architecture to sharply reduce construction costs, aiming its apartments toward what it calls a badly underserved market: The missing middle. That covers municipal workers, health care employees, moderate-income seniors and others who earn too much to get subsidized housing but still fall far short of affording the new high-end apartments appearing across Connecticut.

But there has been serious pushback in several communities where Vessel is trying to build, with homeowners complaining that the company would bring unwanted density, create traffic on congested roads and force modernistic multifamily buildings into historic neighborhoods.

Vessel is suing Simsbury and Glastonbury after they rejected its proposals, and its lawyers are invoking the states 8-30g law. For most middle-of-the-road and affluent suburbs, 8-30g sharply restricts the grounds that zoning boards can cite for rejecting affordable housing proposals.

Some affordable housing advocates contend that local opposition has really represented just a not-in-my-backyard attitude, but homeowners say theyre trying to protect the character of their community.

Currently, Vessels Connecticut plans cover seven communities and total just under 400 apartments ranging from conceptual to already built and leased.

The newest would put up 42 units along Tolland Turnpike in Manchester. The three-story building would have a footprint of just 10,300 square feet, and would offer 40 one-bedroom and two two-bedroom units.

It would be located on the corner of Jefferson Street, with driveways into a 55-car parking lot from both Jefferson and Tolland Turnpike.

Vessel would need to combine two parcels, one vacant with scrub and trees and the other with a house fronting the intersection. Vessel would demolish the house, build the apartment complex set back from Tolland Turnpike by more than 75 feet, and create small recreation and passive recreation areas with some of the remaining land.

Vessel has not yet sought zoning permits for the work, but instead presented the conceptual idea informally to the Planning and Zoning Commission in early December to gauge reactions.

In New London, Vessel already has leased its new Bank Street building, which has 30 one-bedrooms.

Planners in Rocky Hill rejected Vessels first application, but a negotiation produced an alternate site where Vessel is now approved to build 96 units. The construction timetable has not been made public so far.

In November, Vessel broke ground on a five-story building for 70 apartments along Realty Drive near Route 10 in Cheshire. There will be 66 one-bedrooms and four two-bedrooms.

Granby residents came out in force last summer to oppose Vessels original proposal, which it later withdrew. In December the company came back with a downsized plan that would create 42 apartments on Route 189 about a half-mile from Route 10. It is likely to present that proposal to the wetlands board in January.

The company also wants to put up 64 apartments in Simsbury and 48 in Glastonbury, but both of those proposals are on hold pending the outcome of its lawsuits appealing rejections by local land use planners.

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Developer hopes to have prefab apartments in seven CT towns - Hartford Courant

Apartment building destroyed after fire in Southeast Fresno  KMPH Fox 26

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Apartment building destroyed after fire in Southeast Fresno - KMPH Fox 26

Sixteen of the top 20 metro areas posted gains during the year

HAMILTON, New Jersey January 25, 2022 The value of commercial and multifamily construction starts in the top 20 metropolitan areas of the U.S. increased 18% from 2020 to 2021, according to Dodge Construction Network. Nationally, commercial and multifamily construction starts increased 16% in 2021. In the leading half (the top 10 metro areas), commercial and multifamily starts rose 18% in 2021, with two metro areas, Washington, DC, and Los Angeles, CA, posting a decline. In the lesser half of metro areas (those ranked 11 through 20), commercial and multifamily starts rose 17% in 2021, with Chicago, IL, and Nashville, TN, losing ground from 2020.

Commercial and multifamily construction starts staged a solid recovery in 2021 following stalled projects and growing uncertainties that plagued the industry in 2020. It bears noting, however, that commercial and multifamily construction starts remain below 2019 levels, highlighting that the sector has yet to fully recover from the impact of the pandemic. In fact, larger metro areas have struggled to gain momentum as demand for construction shifts away from denser urban areas.

In the top 20 metro areas of 2021, commercial and multifamily starts were 5% below the level recorded in 2019, and national commercial and multifamily starts were 2% below the 2019 level. In the top 10 metro areas, commercial and multifamily starts were 9% below their 2019 levels, while starts in the metro areas ranked 11-20 were up 5% from 2019. This reveals that in 2021, smaller, less dense metropolitan areas are becoming increasingly popular.

The New York metropolitan area was the top market for commercial and multifamily starts in 2021 at $26.8 billion, an increase of 14% from 2020. The Dallas, TX, metropolitan area was in second place, totaling $10.7 billion for the year, an impressive 45% gain over 2020. The Miami, FL, metro area was ranked third in 2021, with commercial and multifamily starts totaling $8.4 billion, a dramatic 65% increase over 2020.

The remaining top 10 metropolitan areas through the first half of 2021 were:

In summary, the top 10 metropolitan areas accounted for 39% of all commercial and multifamily starts in the United States, unchanged from their 2020 share.

The second-largest metro group included:

This secondary group of metro areas accounted for 18% of all commercial and multifamily starts in the United States in 2021, unchanged in share from the previous year.

The commercial and multifamily total is comprised of office buildings, stores, hotels, warehouses, commercial garages and multifamily housing. Not included in this ranking are institutional projects (e.g., educational facilities, hospitals, convention centers, casinos, transportation terminals), manufacturing buildings, single family housing, public works and electric utilities/gas plants.

In 2021, total U.S. commercial and multifamily building starts rose 16% to $236.6 billion from 2020. Nationally, commercial starts were up 8% to $120.3 billion, while multifamily starts were 25% higher at $116.4 billion. Within the top 10 metro areas, commercial building starts rose 11% to $45.1 billion in 2021, while multifamily starts gained 25% to $48.0 billion. Within the second largest group of metropolitan areas, commercial building starts declined 4% in 2021, while multifamily starts improved 42% from 2020.

Commercial and multifamily construction starts staged a strong rebound in 2021, despite the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, stated Richard Branch, Chief Economist for Dodge Construction Network. This recovery, however, has been fairly uneven with the focus on warehouse and multifamily activity, while office and hotel construction remain more constrained by the pandemic. Looking ahead, 2022 should bring with it a more even recovery spread across most commercial project types, while multifamily will continue to benefit from the high cost of single-family homes. While positivity abounds for the year ahead, be aware that high material prices and a shortage of skilled labor will prove to be limiting factors and will restrain overall growth.

In the New York, NY, metropolitan area, commercial and multifamily construction starts rose 14% in 2021 to $26.8 billion. Despite this strong gain, the level of activity is 13% below the level of construction starts in 2019. Multifamily starts were up 20% in 2021. The largest multifamily projects to break ground in 2021 were the $500 million 625 Fulton Street mixed-use project, the $349 million first phase of the Bronx Point mixed-use project, and the $300 million Islablue Apartments and Condominiums. In 2021, commercial starts rose 8%, led by gains in warehouses, retail, and parking while offices and hotels posted declines. The largest commercial projects to get underway in 2021 were the $1.5 billion JPMorgan Chase office tower, the $1.2 billion Terminal Warehouse conversion and a $380 million Bronx Logistics Center.

Commercial and multifamily starts in the Dallas, TX, metro area were up 45% in 2021 to $10.7 billion and surpassing the mark set during 2019, prior to the onset of the pandemic. Commercial starts rose 41% during the year with only the retail sector losing ground. The largest commercial projects started in 2021 were the $550 million second phase of the Lowes Hotel and Convention Center, the $175 million Granite Park Six office tower and the $150 million Hardwood No. 14 office tower. Multifamily starts were 52% higher in 2021. The largest multifamily projects to get underway in 2021 were the $250 million Maple Terrace residential building, the $120 million Hall Park D4 residential tower and the $100 million Urby residential tower.

In the Miami, FL, metropolitan area, commercial and multifamily construction starts rose 65% in 2021 to $8.4 billion. The dollar value of multifamily starts more than doubled in 2021, rising 104%. The largest multifamily projects to break ground in 2021 were the $1 billion 1 Southside Park mixed-use building, the $250 million Five Park condominiums and apartments and the $206 million first phase of the Miami River mixed-use project. Commercial starts were 21% higher in 2021, led by gains in parking structures, hotels and retail. Office and warehouse starts were both lower in 2021. The largest commercial buildings to get started in 2021 were the $340 million Legacy Hotel, the $122 million second phase of the Bridge Point Commerce Center warehouse project and the $75 million Boca Raton resort.

Washington, D.C.s commercial and multifamily building starts fell 9% in 2021 to $8.4 billion, and they remain 29% below the mark set in 2019. Commercial starts in Washington, D.C., lost 18% due to pullbacks in office, retail and warehouse starts. Starts for parking structures and hotels, however, both posted a gain in 2021. The largest commercial projects to break ground in 2021 were the $450 million Sterling 144 MW EdgeCore data center, the $225 million Vantage data center and the $200 million 20 Massachusetts Ave. renovation project. Multifamily building starts rose 1% in 2021. The largest multifamily project to get underway in 2021 was the $267 million 1900 Crystal/1851 S. Bell South & North residences, the $230 million Mather Senior Living Community and the $174 million 4000 Wisconsin Ave. NW/Upton Place mixed-use project.

Commercial and multifamily starts in the Boston, MA, metropolitan area rose 16% in 2021 to $7.3 billion. Despite the strong gain, starts were still 12% shy of their pre-pandemic high in 2019. Multifamily starts were particularly robust during the year, increasing 29%. The largest multifamily projects to break ground in 2021 were the $200 million 60 Kilmarnock St. residential building, the $200 million DOT Block Residences and the $165 million Union Square/USQ residential tower. Commercial starts rose 5% in 2021, led by increases in warehouse and parking structure starts, while office, hotel, and retail starts each fell. The largest commercial projects to break ground in 2021 were the $466 million North Andover Amazon distribution center, the $350 million Amazon Seaport Square office tower and the $225 million 171 Dartmouth St. office building.

Los Angeles, CA, commercial and multifamily starts were down 12% in 2021 to $7.1 billion and were down 24% from the pre-pandemic peak in 2019. Commercial starts in Los Angeles were down 32% over the year entirely due to the office and hotel sectors, which saw several large projects break ground in early 2020. Meanwhile, retail and warehouse starts increased. The largest commercial projects to get underway in 2021 were the $200 million Spectrum Terrace office campus, the $102 million OCSD headquarter project and the $100 million Ovation Hollywood mixed-use building. Multifamily starts improved 6% in 2021. The largest multifamily projects to break ground were the $250 million 520 S. Mateo Arts District mixed-use, the $215 million Broad Block mixed-use building and the $125 million The Line at Burbank apartments.

In Atlanta, GA, commercial and multifamily starts were up 49% to $6.6 billion in 2021. Despite the gain, commercial and multifamily starts were still 9% below the level of starts in 2019. Multifamily starts rose 46% in 2021 thanks to large projects such as the $400 million 1018 West Peachtree apartments, the $300 million first phase of the High Street Atlanta mixed-use development and the $175 million Hanover apartments. Commercial starts gained 52% in 2021, with all categories except for parking structures gaining ground over the year. The largest commercial projects to get underway in 2021 were the $271 million Signia Hilton Hotel at Georgia World Congress Center, the $202 million CDC Chamblee campus buildings and the $100 million The Cubes at River Park warehouse building.

Seattle, WA, commercial and multifamily construction starts were 48% higher in 2021 at $6.2 billion and were 18% higher than in 2019. Commercial starts were up 44% in the office, warehouse and retail sectors, while hotel and parking posted declines. The largest commercial projects to get underway in 2021 were the $355 million Project Roxy distribution center, the $325 million Amazon Bellevue 600 Tower One and the $270 million The Eight office building. Multifamily starts rose 51% in 2021 with the $150 million Google Campus development, the $131 million First Light mixed-use project and the $113 million SkyGlass Tower apartments among the largest multifamily projects to break ground.

In Phoenix, AZ, commercial and multifamily starts were up 11% to $6 billion in 2021, up 48% from the pre-pandemic high set in 2019. Multifamily starts, however, fell 8% in 2021. The largest multifamily projects to get underway in 2021 were the $170 million Culdesac Tempe apartment building, the $91 million first phase of the Milhaus North apartments and the $87 million Skye on 6th apartments. Commercial starts moved 27% higher in 2021 due to increases in warehouse, retail and office starts, while hotel and parking structure starts fell. The largest commercial projects to break ground in 2021 were the $800 million first phase of the Facebook Eastmark Parkway data center campus, the $100 million first phase of The Cubes at Glendale warehouse project and the $75 million NTT data center.

Commercial and multifamily building starts in Houston, TX, rose 5% in 2021 to $5.5 billion but were 37% lower than the level of activity before the pandemic in 2019. Commercial starts increased 4% in 2021 due to gains in warehouse, hotel and retail starts, while office and parking structures declined. The largest commercial projects to get underway in 2021 were the $135 million second phase of the Empire West Business Park, the $125 million 1550 on The Green office building and the $70 million TGS Cedar Port warehouse. In 2021 multifamily starts rose 6% with the largest multifamily projects to get underway including the $89 million The Hawthorne condo tower, the $61 million West Dallas apartment building and the $60 million Oleanders at Broadway residential building.

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Commercial and Multifamily Construction Starts Post Solid Recovery in 2021 - Construction.com

Construction has begun on the next phase of a high-end apartment complex at the late philanthropist Robert L.B. Tobins former Northeast Side estate.

Dallas developer Rosewood Property Co. last year completed 286 units, a pool and a clubhouse at 3310 Oakwell Court. Now its building another 311 units, seven townhomes and a 4,500-square-foot fitness center at the complex, dubbed The Tobin Estates Apartments.

Work is expected to wrap up in fall of 2023 and a third and final phase with around 355 units will begin after that, a spokesperson said.

With the outstanding success of our initial phase at Tobin Estates, phase two is designed to build upon that success by diversifying living options and finishes, Rick Perdue, president of Rosewood Property, said in a statement. By adding even more amenities to the existing ones, phase two will offer an extension to the existing outdoor oasis. We are excited to grow this great community in north San Antonio.

Rents for one-bedroom units generally start at $1,500, two-bedrooms at $1,800 and three-bedrooms at $2,450, the spokesperson said. The Tobin Estates are over 96 percent occupied.

On ExpressNews.com: Dallas developer finishes first phase of apartments at former Tobin estate

Tobins mansion on the property houses the Tobin Endowments offices.

Rosewood Property Co. recently started construction on the second phase of The Tobin Estates Apartments, as shown in renderings.

Tobin, heir to an aerial mapping company founded by his father, was a patron of arts and cultural institutions and a collector of paintings, designs for opera and ballet productions and other works.

His original estate included 500 acres. In the 1980s, he developed Oakwell Farms, a master-planned community with upscale homes, multifamily dwellings and office buildings.

Plans to sell and develop most of what was left of the estate in 2015 were opposed by many Oakwell Farms residents.

The Tobin Endowment had proposed working with developer David Weekley to build more than 400 detached townhomes but residents argued it would be too dense. Citing concerns about drainage and traffic problems, they also pushed back against a plan for 956 apartments but said they would support the complex if it reflected the neighborhoods character.

J. Bruce Bugg Jr., chairman and trustee of the Tobin Endowment, said developing the land would generate more property tax revenue and was in line with Tobins vision. The property was tax-exempt and selling it would generate more money for charity, he said.

Seventy-four people spoke against the apartments at a Planning Commission meeting in 2015. After three hours, commissioners gave the go-ahead to the development on a 7-1 vote.

On ExpressNews.com: Tobin Estate apartments approved despite protests from Oakwell Farms residents

The Tobin Endowment sold about 44 acres in 2016 for an undisclosed price to Rosewood, a subsidiary of The Rosewood Corp. that has also built two apartment complexes near the intersection of Interstate 10 and Loop 1604.

Some Oakwell Farms residents remain worried about traffic congestion worsening and flooding due to debris back-up, residents Beverly Alcott and Barbara Lowry said in February interviews.

Multifamily development is surging in the San Antonio area. There were 16,657 units under construction locally as of the third quarter, with work on more than 10,000 more expected to begin in the next year, according to a report by ApartmentTrends.com.

Investors are also buying existing complexes and vacant land, according to the report.

Average occupancy at local apartments was 95 percent for the three months ended in September. Average rent per month was $1,169, up from $1,008 in the third quarter of 2020 and from $1,018 in the third quarter of 2019, prior to the coronavirus pandemic.

Sales and construction are off the charts as everyone tries to get in on the action, the reports authors wrote. The current climate is reminiscent of the apartment boom that hit Austin in the 1990s, yet San Antonio has eased into this boom, as a steady city does.

madison.iszler@express-news.net

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More high-end apartments on the way at Tobin estate as second phase of construction starts - San Antonio Express-News

Construction of an $11 million apartment project at 520 88th St. in West Des Moinesis expected to be completed by fall.Rendering courtesy of TWG

Construction is underway in West Des Moines on an $11 million, 49-unit apartment development whose targeted residents qualify for affordable rental rates.In the past few years, theres been an underinvestment in affordable housing in the Des Moines area, and specifically in West Des Moines, said Graham Parr, development analyst at TWG, the Indianapolis-based real estate development company developing Pointe on 88th at 520 88th St.Demand for affordable housing has increased during the pandemic, Parr said. This project will help satisfy that additional demand.The three-story apartment building will include one- to three-bedroom units, 44 of which will be reserved for people earning between 30% and 60% of the area median income, or between $24,700 and $49,302 annually for a family of three. Rental rates for a family of three will range from $618 to $1,233 per month.Five of the buildings units will be leased at market rates.Amenities in the building will include a community room and fitness center.The Pointe on 88th is TWGs 12th project in Iowa. The company recently completed construction of theLillis Lofts,a $10 million affordable housing project in Urbandale. Other Iowa projects include Annex on the Square, a new $49 million mixed-income multifamily property that will cover a city block in downtown Cedar Rapids and Federal Point, a $39 million workforce housing property in Davenport.TWG also developed the 213-unit apartment building at 201 S.E. Sixth St. in Des Moines East Village neighborhood. TWG sold the buildingin October.Construction of the West Des Moines apartment is expected to be completed by fall 2022.

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49-unit WDM affordable apartment project expected to be completed by fall - Business Record

In June 2019, Willow Valley Communities announced plans to partner with Lancaster Equity on a renovation of Southern Market. At the same time it said it would build a multi-story mixed use complex across the street. In December 2020, Willow Valley said the latter project at the former LNP production building at the northwest corner of South Queen and West Vine streets would be a $90 million 147-apartment 20-story high rise the tallest building in the city called Mosaic.

After getting several key approvals, the final plan for Mosaic is still subject to review by the city planning commission, which John Swanson, CEO of Willow Valley Development Corp., said could come in the next several months. Although Willow Valley could soon have the final go-ahead, the earliest construction might start is late this year since Swanson said Willow Valley first wants to get commitments on at least 70% of its units.

Our process is to sell and then build, not build and then try to sell, Swanson said.

In its marketing materials for Mosaic, Willow Valley plays up its proximity to Southern Market. On the Willow Valley website, Southern Market features prominently in the foreground of a rendering of Mosaic. And a description of life at Mosaic begins, Travel the culinary globe, just across the street from the revitalized Southern Market food hall.

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Construction of Willow Valley Communities' 20-story downtown building to begin after sales of its apartments - LNP | LancasterOnline

Over the past decade, many cities around the world have experienced a significant rise in housing costs, and the large cities of New Zealand are no exception. The small nations median house price rose by approximately 130% between 2011 and 2021, far outpacing household income growth and eroding housing affordability.

Undersupply has contributed to these rising housing costs. Census data reveals that New Zealands population increased by 10.8% between 2013 and 2018, but the stock of occupied dwellings only increased by 6.6% over the same periodindicating that there are chronic shortages of housing in the locations where people want to live.

In response, the New Zealand government recently passed sweeping zoning reform legislation to permit medium-density housing in all of the countrys major cities. This policy builds on the earlier success of upzoning in the countrys largest city, Auckland, to redress housing shortages by encouraging higher-density housing. The reform is also part of a broader policy shift to encourage housing construction by allowing cities to build up.

In October 2021, New Zealands center-left Labour government announced the zoning reform to stimulate housing construction through redevelopment. The so-called Medium Density Residential Standard will require the countrys most populous cities to permit up to three stories and three dwellings on all existing residential parcels of land. The policy would allow a parcel with a detached single-family dwelling to be redeveloped into row houses or a small apartment block.

The reforms represent a significant reversal in the nations approach to urban planning and development. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has adopted land use policies that encouraged low-density housing in residential areas, entrenching detached single-family housing in its suburbs. Consequently, construction of high-rise apartment buildings has been limited to central business districts and areas zoned for commercial use. Construction of medium-density housing, such as the rowhouses that are commonly found in the cities on the East Coast of the United States, has been missing from the mix.

Although local governments are responsible for the design and implementation of zoning regulations, the prevalence of low-density housing was underpinned by national-level legislation governing land use. The 1991 Resource Management Act restricted urban development and has been repeatedly criticized for insufficient recognition of housing and infrastructure in its purpose and guiding principles. The act not only presented an impediment to building vertically, but it also hampered the ability of cities to grow horizontally. A long series of official inquiries has identified its shortcomings.

The Resource Management Act restrained housing supply and attendant infrastructure during a period of significant population growth. Between 1991 and 2018, New Zealands population grew by approximately two-thirds. Over the same period, the social impacts of increasing housing costs have become more acute. Housing costs for low-income New Zealanders have doubled as a proportion of their income since the 1980s, and homeownership rates have fallen while household debt has increased substantially.

Over the past decade, both center-left and center-right governments have deployed policies intended to rein in runaway house prices. These include both demand- and supply-side policies, such as a capital gains tax targeted at housing speculation, a ban on foreign investment in residential housing, fast-tracked inclusive housing developments, and state-subsidized housing development projects.

The effect of monetary and macro-prudential policy on house prices has also increasingly been put under the spotlight. Upon the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the countrys central bank dropped interest rates to all-time lows and removed macro-prudential restrictions on mortgage credit, fueling a further 20% to 40% increase in house prices in different regions across the country. The government reacted by pushing for the central bank to consider house prices when setting interest rates, raising concerns that the long-held independence of the central bank was being undermined.

Typically, a political partys housing policies are criticized by the opposing party. However, the original announcement of the Medium Density Residential Standard in October was notable for being bipartisan. The minister for housing, Dr. Megan Woods, shared the podium with members of the opposition National Party when making the announcement, who made their own statements voicing their support. The bill was subsequently passed in December with bipartisan support.

Bipartisanship lends the zoning reform credibility. Policies to promote redevelopment and densification are often unpopular with local residents, which raises the possibility that the policy will be overturned after the next election. But the opposition partys public support for the bill indicates that the law will remain in place even if it wins the next election in 2023. A bipartisan commitment removes political uncertainty and encourages developers and homebuyers to incorporate the policy changes into their decision making.

This is not the first time New Zealand has turned to zoning reforms to encourage housing construction. In 2016, the nations largest city, Auckland, upzoned approximately three-quarters of its residential land area under the Auckland Unitary Plan (AUP). Auckland houses about a third of the nations 5 million people, and is also the countrys commercial capital, accounting for 38% of the gross domestic product.

Although motivated by a variety of factors, the undersupply of housing and erosion of housing affordability were the prominent justifications for the zoning reforms introduced under the AUP. The municipal government for the entire metropolitan area, the Auckland Council, estimated that the plan tripled the dwelling capacity of the city.

My work with Peter Phillips shows that the AUP has enabled a construction boom. New housing units permitted have increased every year since the policy was enacted, with all of these increases occurring in the citys upzoned areas.

Immediately prior to the plan, new housing units permitted peaked at about 6,000 in 2015. By 2020, that figure had climbed to over 14,300.

The policy also shifted residential construction into attached multifamily housing. Immediately prior to the plan, new dwelling permits for attached housing peaked at 1,300 in 2015; by 2020, that figure had climbed to 8,100. This means that most of the 14,300 new dwelling permits issued in 2020 were for attached housing. The policy also stimulated an increase in detached housing, but the increase is not nearly as great. Prior to the policy, detached permits peaked at about 4,700 in 2015; by 2019, that figure had risen to just under 6,200.

Upzoning also encouraged a more compact city by stimulating construction in Aucklands inner suburban areas, which span a radius of approximately 20 to 25 kilometers from the central business district. In 2015, about two in three housing permits issued were in the inner suburbs. By 2020, six out of every seven permits issued were for construction of a home in the inner suburbs.

The success of upzoning in Auckland provided the blueprint for more recent national zoning reforms, with the business case for the policy change based on construction activity and outcomes in the citys medium-density zones.

The Medium Density Residential Standard comes on the heels of another national policy directive to encourage housing densification along public transit corridors. In 2020, the Labour government issued the National Policy Statement on Urban Development, which requires large cities to zone for residential structures of up to six stories within walking distance of rapid transit stations (approximately 800 meters, at the minimum recommendation).

In addition to redressing the housing shortages that have accumulated over the past three decades, transit-oriented housing development is intended to lower energy consumption through shorter commutes and increased patronage of public transit, assisting the country to meet its carbon neutrality goals.

New Zealands three zoning reform policies enacted over the past five yearsthe Auckland Unitary Plan, the National Policy Statement on Urban Development, and the Medium Density Residential Standardadd up to a shift to encourage more housing construction through a more compact form of urban development.

The results from Auckland to date indicate that these reforms can enable housing construction and redevelopment. This is important, as rezoning reforms do not always achieve their anticipated goals. Understanding and identifying the catalysts that enabled construction in Auckland can help policymakers in the design and implementation of zoning reforms in the future.

What remains to be seen is the extent to which zoning reforms can enhance affordability. If the increase in housing supply in Auckland and other cities can bring down house prices in the years to come, New Zealands reforms can be a model for other countries struggling with housing affordability to follow.

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New Zealands bipartisan housing reforms offer a model to other countries - Brookings Institution