Guest Interviewee: Kathy Schwab

Hosted By: Logan Price, Arthur Schmid

Written By: Logan Price  

Produced By: Teddy Morgan-Jablonski

Edited By: Harris Eidelman

Researched By: Asmita Gurung, Samiha Tasnima

Episode Description:

Welcome to the concluding episode of the third series of If Cincinnati’s Walls Could Talk, a podcast collaboratively produced by our Housing Systems class, taught by Doctor

In this final episode, our hosts revisit the fundamental questions: What is housing, and why is it so important? They reflect on insights from a veteran housing advocate Kathy Schwab, whom our team got a chance to interview, discussing the challenges and aspirations for Cincinnati’s affordable housing landscape.

Key topics include:

Despite these challenges, the episode ends on a hopeful note, emphasizing growing public awareness of the housing crisis. The hosts urge listeners to recognize housing as a fundamental human right and advocate for meaningful change.

Episode Timeline:

·     Why it Matters- 00:00

·     Affordable Housing in Cincinnati- 02:15

·     Challenges We Still Face- 03:21

·     Reason to Hope- 05:55 

References:

Housing Our Future Summary of Progress 2020 -2023, (2023).

https://www.lisc.org/media/filer_public/b4/13/b413c178-735a-43c9-8ec9f375d23571b7/hof_summary_of_progress.pdf

Housing Our Future Strategies for Cincinnati and Hamilton

https://www.gcfdn.org/wp content/uploads/2020/07/housing_our_future_-_5-27 2020.pdf

Housing Affordability in Hamilton County, (2017, February). LISC Greater Cincinnati.

https://www.lisc.org/media/filer_public/a1/16/a116fbab 4be3-4704-98e6 83f633b7d893/asset_upload_file30_13212.pdf

Cincinnati’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund Available for Use Four Years after Being Established, (2022, October 3). National Low Income Housing Coalition. https://nlihc.org/resource/cincinnatis-affordable-housing-trust-fund-available-use-four-years-after-being-established

Costello, B. (2023, May 23). Just one project in Hamilton County will get a low-income housing tax credit this year. 91.7 WVXU News. https://www.wvxu.org/local-news/2023-05-23/hamilton-county-low-income-housing-tax-credit-spaeth-kelly-hall

Thank you to our Professor Hayden Shelby and Guest

Written by Logan Price

Hosted by Logan Price and Arthur Schmid

Produced by Teddy Morgan-Jablonski

Edited by Harris Eidelman

Researched by Asmita Gurung and Samiha Tasnima

Additional resources:

 Interviewee: Kathy Schwab

Local Initiatives Support Corporation: LISC Greater Cincinnati

Low Income Housing Tax Credit: LIHTC

Ohio Low Income Housing Tax Credit: OHLITC

News Article on LIHTC deals in Hamilton County 

Super CDC: Ohio CDC

Super CDC in Columbus: Community Development Collaborative of Greater Columbus

In this episode of If Cincinnati’s walls could talk listeners will learn about all things CDFIs. This includes what CDFIs are, how they work, and the impact they have on affordable housing projects. Special thanks to Luke Blocher who spoke with us about the way Cincinnati development fund operates as a CDFI. Without his insights, this episode would not have been possible.

Key Takeaways:

·     What a CDFI is

·     How CDFIs get funding

·     The role of CDFIs in affordable housing

·     How funds are managed and distributed

·     Challenges in affordable housing financing

·     CDFIs supporting diverse developers

Featured Guest:

·     Luke Blocher – General Counsel and Chief Strategy Officer, Cincinnati Development Fund (CDF)

Resources & Links:

·     What is a CDFI? This Opportunity finance network page provides a description of CDFIs and explains how and who they operate for.

·     Cincinnati development fund’s page on lending shares information on their role as a lender for low to moderate income communities.

·     Cincinnati development fund Explains the affordable housing leverage fund and Cincinnati development fund’s role in managing and distributing funds.

Podcast Credits:

Thank you to Tyler Cole, Avery Keller, Celeste Leonard, Kevin Schenkel, and Makenzie Stewart for their contributions to this episode.

Homesteading and Urban Redevelopment Corporation. Homesteading & Urban Redevelopment Corporation. (n.d.). https://hurccincy.org/

Mercado, A. (2024, August 2). Defining community development in order to fund it. Shelterforce. https://shelterforce.org/2024/06/14/defining-community-development-in-order-to-fund-it/

Who we are. FHLB Cincinnati. (n.d.). https://www.fhlbcin.com/who-we-are/

Woodruff, F. (2023, December 6). What is a community development corporation? - non profit news: Nonprofit quarterly. Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly. https://nonprofitquarterly.org/what-is-a-community-development-corporation/

Special thanks to Deborah Robb, Director of Real Estate Development for HURC (Homesteading & Redevelopment Corporation) and Eric Hunn, general contractor and founder/owner of Hunn’s Construction

Special thanks to Hayden Shelby for making this season possible

Introduction: ​

This episode focuses on College Hill, a neighborhood in Cincinnati, and the transformation of the Hollywood Apartments from disrepair to a model of affordable housing.

Key Takeaways:   

We would like to thank Kate Greene, former CEO of College Hill Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation (CHCURC), and Emmanuel Karikari current CHRCURC CEO, for their time and expertise.

Thank you for joining us for Episode 5 of this season of If Cincinnati’s Walls Could Talk.

We would like to extend our appreciation to our interviewee, Gary Boeres, Director of Housing Development at the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority, for sharing his insights with us.

We also wish to acknowledge the contributions of our team, whose efforts made this episode possible:

Research: Kylee Arvidson

Interviews: Sean Kidd

Scriptwriting: Ben Sizemore

Narration: Sam Leeman and Sean Kidd

Audio Editing: Alysse Aylor

Thank you all for your fantastic work!

Citations:

Boeres, Gary. Interview. Conducted by Sean Kidd. 22 November 2024.

Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority. Development. Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority. Accessed 26 November 2024, from https://cintimha.com/development/

Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority. RAD (Rental

Urban Sites. Bennett Point 532 and 600 East 12th. Urban Sites. Accessed 26 November 2024, from https://urbansites.com/project/bennett-point-532-and-600-east-12th

References:

City of Cincinnati. (2024). Notice of Funding Availability. https://www.choosecincy.com/nofa.

Ohio Housing Finance Agency. (n.d.). Bennett Point Proposal Summary. https://ohiohome.org/ppd/proposals/2020/UrbanOpportunity/BennettPoint.pdf.

Strieby, S. (2024, July 10). Strength in Diversity: Crafting an Affordable Housing Coalition in Cincinnati. Shelterforce. https://shelterforce.org/2024/07/10/strength-in-diversity-crafting-an-affordable-housing-coalition-in cincinnati/#:~:text=The%20report%2C%20Housing%20Affordability%20in,and%20begin%20organizing%20for%20change.

Thank you to Ryan Haas, Kale Merillat, Melissa Plaggemars, Charlie Shepherd, and Mitch Stone for their work toward making this episode possible. We’d also like to thank Stephanie Sweeney for taking the time for our interview and providing her professional input on all things LIHTC.

References

Kneebone, E., & Reid, C. K. (2021, April). The Complexity of Financing Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Housing in the United States. https://ternercenter.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/LIHTC-Complexity-Final.pdf.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (N.d.). Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/lihtc.html.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (N.d.). Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities. https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/housing/mfh/progdesc/disab811.

In this episode, we explore the Barrister, an innovative

Key Quotes:    

Resources Mentioned:

Links and Further Reading:

Hosts Greg Robison and Mitali Taraikar sit down to discuss the state of affordable housing in Cincinnati and the United States as a whole. They hear from Liz Blume, who spent 30 years as a planning professional; she stresses the need for additionally affordable housing units and the increased public attention in recent years. They take a look back on the historic shift away from publicly funded housing units to subsidized housing vouchers. Liz then introduces the complicated financial system that was formed at the local level to continue the construction of affordable housing units. 

References 

Acosta, Sonya, and Erik Gartland. “Families Wait Years for Housing Vouchers due to Inadequate 

Funding.” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 22 July 2021, www.cbpp.org/research/housing/families-wait-years-for-housing-vouchers-due-to-inadequate-funding. 

Aurand, A., Emmanuel, D., Clarke, M., Pish, M., &. Rafi, I. “A Shortage of Affordable Homes.” 

National Low-income Housing Coalition. (2024). https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/gap/2024/Gap-Report_2024.pdf 

“President Reagan's Remarks on Signing the Housing and Community Development Act on 

February 5, 1988” 2:35-3:35. https://www.google.com/search?q=Ronald+Raegan+speaking+about+housing&sca_esv 

Rosen, Eva. The Voucher Promise: “Section 8” and the Fate of an American Neighborhood. 

Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 2020. 

Thank you to our guest interview Liz Blume. Produced by Poorva Reedy, written by Iris Boyer, researched and hosted by Greg Robinson and Mitali Taraikar, and edited by Josh Johnson and Rubina Rafeeque. 

Why is it so hard to build affordable housing? In the next nine episodes, we'll tackle that questions, taking you through the complex system of affordable housing finance in Cincinnati and the United States. You'll hear case studies of developments around the city, as well as background on the infrastructure that funds and supports these developments. We hope you enjoy!