HAND Members,

Greetings & Happy Black History Month! As the Library of Congress reminds us, the origins of this month can be attributed to Carter G. Woodson, who “believed that truth could not be denied and that reason would prevail over prejudice.” I hope you will join us in honoring the rich history of the African American experience, and the milestones that are yet unseen. 

It’s hard to believe it’s officially been one year in my role as Executive Director. The time is moving swiftly, but it’s already been such an incredible adventure. I continue to extend my sincere gratitude to my predecessors, HAND’s Board of Directors, and the larger HAND community for your support.

If you’ve been following our journey, you should have also noticed that our team is growing! Over the last two quarters, we have welcomed our two newest staff members: Steven Palmer (Director of Public Policy) & Racine Tucker-Hamilton (Director of Communications & Thought Leadership). Both Steven & Racine have been incredible additions to the staff, and I am confident that their expertise will help us sustain a first-class member experience. You can learn more about our entire team here – and as always, feel free to reach out to us with any questions, partnership opportunities, or concerns you’d like to discuss.

I’d be doing a disservice if I didn’t also acknowledge the unprecedented climate that we are all navigating. In times of uncertainty, there are often more questions than answers – but what I can share with you is nothing new: HAND stands ready to work with its members to remove barriers to opportunity for our most vulnerable neighbors. As we process the implications of shifts in policies and programs, we will also prioritize bringing our members along with custom learning opportunities, policy updates and additional resources. I encourage you to keep up with us via notices just like this one, and on our website at www.HANDHousing.org. Over the coming months we have a number of sessions that we believe will be impactful for your work, culminating in the Annual Meeting & Housing Expo on June 5! We can’t make any of this happen without YOU, and we hope you will tap in as we CONVENE, EDUCATE and ACTIVATE our collective. 

Thank you for all that you do for our communities across the region. It is an honor to work together toward greater outcomes.

In partnership,

HAND Members & Partners,

Although the complete results of this week’s election are not yet final, we know that President Donald Trump will become the nation’s 47th President and that control of the Senate will change to the Republican party. 

We cannot say for sure just how the region and the affordable housing landscape may change with the arrival of the new administration and Congress, but we can say for sure that HAND remains committed to supporting the region’s affordable housing industry in its noble efforts to produce, preserve, and protect affordable housing. 

This election was close and contentious and made clear that we live in a profoundly divided nation. But the issues of housing affordability and racial equity have also never been so central in American politics. Through our convenings, training & capacity building opportunities, and advocacy initiatives like the Housing Indicator Tool, HAND will continue to push for the creation of an abundant supply of affordable housing and the policies needed to make that a reality. 

HAND stands ready to work together with our members and leaders at every level of government to unite behind making housing more affordable and reversing the effects of historically racist housing policies in the Capital Region. We are deeply grateful for the partnership of our network, and look forward to continued collaboration as we seek greater opportunities for all of our neighbors.

In Solidarity,

Courtney Battle  Executive Director HAND	Sarah Constant  President HAND

By: Laura Searfoss, Senior Program Director, Enterprise

New transit investment presents incredible opportunities for our region: more resilient and equitable communities, shorter and easier commutes, and access to more places to live near transit. The Purple Line construction of an east-west light rail between Montgomery and Prince George’s counties will strengthen physical, social, and economic connections across the DMV.

The often-touted economic benefits of new or expanded transit, however, have a checkered history, especially in communities of color. As highlighted in a recent Baltimore Sun op-ed, “Purple Line must not jeopardize affordable housing,” we don’t need to look far across the Greater Washington region to see patterns of exclusion and displacement due to large-scale transit investment. Recognizing the importance of preserving affordability in communities near new transit, nearly all jurisdictions in the Greater Washington—including Montgomery and Prince George’s counties—have policies that prioritize affordable homes near transit.

In 2014, the Purple Line Corridor Coalition was formed to ensure the economic benefits of the new light rail extend into surrounding communities. The coalition spurs collaboration between cross-sector partners to realize shared goals and achieve greater impact.

The coalition has seen the power of what private and philanthropic placed-based capital can do, especially when coupled with local public funding. In three short years, the Purple Line Capital Pool supported the creation or preservation of about 1,100 affordable homes. In many cases, it provided early stage, below-market loans to buy a property or support pre-development work—critical capital that helps move a project forward but can be hard to come by. This pool, administered by the National Housing Trust, leveraged more than $104 million. 

With the Purple Line about three years from operations, now is the time to accelerate investments in Purple Line communities to stabilize households and preserve affordability.

Earlier this year, Enterprise Community Partners released a Capital Needs and Nonprofit Analysis for the Purple Line. The study calls for bigger, bolder, cross-sector investment in affordable homes and significantly more place-based capital. The study estimates a need for $740 million, in addition to the $2 billion already in Maryland’s housing system, to meet the Purple Line Corridor Coalition’s goal to stabilize or add homes for at least 17,000 households earning $72,000 or below before 2027.

It reinforces that every sector has a role to play in reaching our region’s housing goals and many of HAND’s calls to action for the private and philanthropic sectors: providing direct funding for housing preservation and development; creatively deploying resources to invest in housing development and services; and using their influence for advocacy and policy change.

David Nisivoccia

The HAND network is hard at work to address the growing housing affordability challenge across the Capital Region. Five Minutes With is a series highlighting these members and other stakeholders. This informal conversation delves into their recent projects, the affordable housing industry, and more. In this edition, we had the pleasure of chatting with David Nisivoccia, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Volunteers of America National Services. Take a look at our dialogue below.

HAND: Congratulations on your new role with Volunteers of America (VOA)! Tell us more about your background and your organization’s work.
David: I’m happy to be returning to the DMV, having grown up in Northern Virginia. I’ve spent most of my career working on behalf of public housing authorities, including Fairfax, San Antonio, and most recently serving as the Executive Director of the Denver Housing Authority. I’m just wrapping up my first 100 days in this position at VOA, and I’m already amazed at the breadth and depth of housing, healthcare and human services provided by the team. I’ve had the opportunity to travel across the country, visiting our programs and housing sites, and a key commonality across these communities is the consistent undersupply of affordable housing.

Founded in 1896, Volunteers of America is a national, faith-based nonprofit organization that serves more than 1.5 million people in 46 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. VOA National Services is a wholly owned affiliate and one of the nation’s largest nonprofit providers of quality affordable housing, with a portfolio of 13,000 units across 38 states and Puerto Rico, as well as senior healthcare facilities and other related community health programs.

HAND: Having worked all over the country, you certainly have seen the housing landscape in different markets. What are some of the trends you have noticed?
David: More than 20 million American renters today are burdened with housing costs. As a result, the average family is extremely sensitive to economic volatility and is even susceptible to homelessness should their household face acute financial challenges. This is especially true here in the District and the surrounding region. With significantly more of the average household’s income going toward housing, that means less money is available for transportation, groceries, healthcare, childcare, and especially savings that could protect folks in times of crisis. Affordable housing is one of the most significant societal challenges of our time – and we aren’t going to build our way out of it fast enough using traditional methods or doing business as usual.

HAND: What are some of the biggest challenges when it comes to building more affordable housing for those priced out of the current market?
David: The National Multifamily Housing Council estimates that 4.3 million new rental homes are needed by 2035 to meet the demand. The challenges are stark: rising interest rates and construction costs, tumultuous equity markets, strong opposition to densifying neighborhoods, limited soft funding and oversubscribed bond cap, an overwhelmed and under-resourced workforce. We must use every single tool in the toolbox, and invent new ones that address the challenge from both the supply and demand sides. We need both carrots and sticks … accelerated entitlements and expedited permitting; efficiently-designed housing; modular and manufactured housing solutions, and new capital stacks that can work well together. And we need new partnerships, and opportunities for mixed-use projects that leverage capital markets and affordable housing programs.

HAND: There certainly is no shortage of challenges facing our sector. What is Volunteers of America doing here in the Capital Region to increase the supply of supportive affordable housing?
David: In partnership with Hoffman & Associates, D.C. United, and the D.C. Government, Volunteers of America is thrilled to relocate our national headquarters into the emerging Buzzard Point neighborhood of Southwest D.C., where we will bring together more than 100 full-time employees, co-located with 110 units of deeply-affordable senior housing operated by Volunteers of America National Services. Of these units, 69 out of 110 units will be set aside for seniors earning 30 percent AMI or less, which we believe is the most critical tier of residents to house.

We are currently exploring strategies to implement best-in-class technology supports to help address social determinants of health. The building is designed to achieve LEED for Multifamily certification, and every single unit will be accessible, allowing residents to age in place and take advantage of built-in infrastructure as their mobility and health needs change. The project also will include market rate multifamily and retail. We are excited to expand our reach in the District of Columbia and bring our national expertise to support local initiatives in the city.

HAND: Why is it important for Volunteers of America to move from your current headquarters in Northern Virginia into the District of Columbia, at Buzzard Point?  
David: In a time of significant office vacancy and hybrid work, Volunteers of America will bring a commercial office presence to DC, as one of our greatest strengths as an organization is being “in-community,” leveraging relationships, trust and connections in the communities we serve. We recognize the value of human connection, as that is what we do every day with the people we serve. Co-locating our staff teams with affordable housing and services in the District is a reflection of our commitment to ensuring we are “in-community,” connected on a daily basis to the communities we live in, work in and have the pleasure to serve. We plan to continue our work as a public policy partner and thought leader in advocacy efforts around affordable housing, making our voices heard and ensuring policies work well for industry practitioners like yourselves.

I look forward to growing our presence in the DMV, and working with all of you to answer the call for meeting the region’s affordable housing needs.