Alven Lam Acting Director Office for International and Philanthropic Innovation Sustainable Housing and Community Development in the U.S. Sustainable Housing and Community Development in the U.S. APEC Low-Carbon Model Town Forum June 2011, Tianjin, China

American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 Green Retrofit Program The Green Retrofit Program will have several public benefits: Reduced energy demand Reduced water consumption Lower operating costs Improved resident quality of life (including comfort and indoor air quality) Reduced overall impact on the environment

The Des Moines, Iowa Metro Region Land Use and Transportation Connection Decrease per capita VMT (Vehicle Miles Travelled) and emissions Reduce housing and transportation costs Increase transit use Promote compact development to help maintain agricultural and natural areas Reduce social and economic disparities

Preparing for Transit in 21 st Century Somerville Six new subway stations by Today, only 15% residents have access to transit 85% of residents will be within ½ mile of transit in 2015 Zoning - bicycle parking requirements and pedestrian friendly design guidelines Enhance inner core cities through transit investment, mixed use development performance measures that will be tracked annually and published

Growing Transit Communities, Central Puget Sound HUD’s Sustainable Communities Grant –Organize new regional partnerships to coordinate development, housing, jobs, and community amenities –Build as many as 100 new transit centers around the region in the next 20 years –Support sustainable neighborhood planning around those transit centers Puget Sound Regional Council, Seattle

GO TO 2040, Chicago Livable Communities: Focus land use decisions on interrelationship between transport, housing, with emphasis on public transit and access to jobs Full cost pricing for drinking water to curb overuse Rain gardens and permeable pavement to manage stormwater Promote retrofitting programs and small-scale renewable energy generation Emphasize compact, mixed use, walkable development Facilitate local food production, create community gardens Regional Mobility: Increase gas taxes; Congestion Pricing on roads and parking Dedicated Truckways to improve Freight Transport Currently: 67% freight movements by truck, 30% by rail Sustainable Practices in the Comprehensive Regional Plan:

Carbon Reducing Technologies BigBelly Solar powered trash can/compactor –ex.: Philadelphia, number of trash collections per week reduced from 17 to 5 DAF hybrid diesel-electric freight trucking –Up to 30% improved fuel efficiency in PACCAR’s medium-duty trucks Gates Foundation sustainable building features include: –Living roofs: insulate, reduce heat- island effect, limit rainwater runoff, add a bird-friendly habitat –Underground rainwater and thermal energy storage

Carbon Reducing Technologies (cont’d) Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations –Encourage faster uptake of EV by consumers –San Francisco will install more than 80 by end of 2011 –Google aims to have 5% of its parking spaces equipped Electric Buses: EcoRide™ BE35 –17.5 – 29 miles per gallon (diesel equivalent) vs mpg for conventional diesel and 4.5 mpg for hybrid –Can be charged in under 10 minutes Smart Meter, Demand Response Pilot Program –900 homes in Washington, D.C. –Summer energy demand down 33%, Winter demand down 13% in response to price signals on peak price days Image courtesy of Felix Kramer (CalCars), Wikimedia Commons

American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 Green Retrofit Program The Green Retrofit Program will have several public benefits: Reduced energy demand Reduced water consumption Lower operating costs Improved resident quality of life (including comfort and indoor air quality) Reduced overall impact on the environment

Contact Information : Alven H. S. Lam Office of Policy Development and Research U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development