Drivers of Energy Efficiency in Affordable Housing
Energy efficiency is particularly important in affordable housing. Because one of the benefits of energy efficiency interventions is lower utility bills, these upgrades can help to ensure rents and costs of living remain affordable. This webinar will explore energy costs in the context of total operating expenses in different types of affordable housing, introduce the drivers (or lack thereof) of energy efficiency upgrades, and offer suggestions for overcoming challenges. Attendees will learn how to make the business case for energy efficiency upgrades to affordable housing owners and developers.
Speakers:
Jon Meyers, Partner, HR&A
During his initial tenure at HR&A, Jon was instrumental in creating an economic rationale for the re-use of the High Line in New York City.He served as the project manager for HR&A’s work creating economic development strategies for downtown Columbus and Cincinnati, Ohio. Following September 11, 2001, Jon also managed the firm’s work to support recovery efforts with the Alliance for Lower Manhattan.
Jon has deep experience advising public and private sector clients on the financing and implementation of complex real estate projects. Prior to rejoining HR&A in 2016, Jon served as the Chief Operating Officer of the Trust for Governors Island, where he was responsible for capital projects, operations, and finance for a complex redevelopment project in New York Harbor.
Jon holds a master’s in business administration from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Geography from Dartmouth College.
Callahan Seltzer, Principal, HR&A
Callahan supports public and private clients’ development and policy goals. Callahan has over 14 years of real estate finance experience across private and public sector development projects. Callahan was previously the National Director of Housing for the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) where she managed LISC’s affordable housing portfolio across 37 local offices and drove affordable housing finance design, preservation strategies and collaborations with investors, banks, philanthropies, and municipal partners. Prior to her work at LISC, Callahan had an independent consulting practice focused on assisting public and nonprofit clients with residential and commercial real estate challenges. She worked closely with local governments on economic redevelopment and small businesses, as well as a variety of district energy and sustainable infrastructure projects.
Callahan holds a master’s in city planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an M.A. from Georgetown University, and a B.A. from Ohio Wesleyan University.
Hannah Glosser, Director, HR&A
Based in HR&A’s New York office, Hannah works on master planning efforts, stakeholder and community engagement, and program design. Prior to joining HR&A, she was a Manager at 100 Resilient Cities (100RC) managing the 100RC Tools portfolio, which practically applied resilience theory to urban strategies and projects. This included leading ideation and capacity building workshops in cities, advising on tactical urbanism projects, and training cities and staff.
In addition, Hannah managed and developed external partnerships in the economic development, community engagement, and equity sectors that offered member cities innovative solutions to address their needs. She also was the project manager for the social infrastructure program and pilot in Cali, Colombia. Hannah worked at the Council on Foreign Relations and Global Strategy Group before joining 100 Resilient Cities.
Hannah has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Education from Colorado College.
Lauren Ross, Senior Advisor, Housing and Sustainability, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Lauren Ross is the Senior Advisor for Housing and Sustainability in the Multifamily Office at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. She works across the department to help make its assisted-multifamily portfolio greener, healthier, and more resilient. She came to HUD from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) where she served as Senior Director of Policy, overseeing state and local policy work as well as utility regulation. Much of her career, she has worked to expand policies and programs to advance clean energy in affordable housing. In her role at HUD, she continues to promote clean energy as a tool to make communities more economically vibrant, healthier, and adaptable in the face of climate change. Lauren has a PhD in Urban Sociology from Temple University.