Call for Action: “House All Angelenos” Panel Discussions

Presented by: AIA LA Government Outreach (GO!) Committee

This is a virtual series of panel discussions. RSVP directly to each zoom link below.

On May 25, 2021 the AIA LA Board put forth a series of concrete recommendations directed at our City’s leadership to facilitate the building of affordable housing and promote social justice. To read the text in full, CLICK HERE.

As a follow up to this “Call for Action,” the AIA LA Government Outreach (GO!) Committee has organized three panel discussions for AIA LA members and the greater LA design community to discuss and clarify the recommendations from the AIA LA board. The three panel discussions will each be led by architects Chava Danielson, AIA, Rick Corsini, AIA, and Tracy Stone, AIA, and will include policy experts, academics, and architects/urbanists.

For more information on each panel, see descriptions below.

Panel #1 = Reinventing Los Angeles’ Boulevards – Finally!
Tuesday, October 26 (8:00am – 9:30am) = RSVP #1 HERE.
Panel #2 = Housing as a Civil Right and Exclusionary Practices: The Way Forward
Monday, November 1 (9:00am to 10:30am) = RSVP #2 HERE.
Panel #3 = Rethinking the Los Angeles Housing Paradigm, or How to Make the System Work For Us, and Not Against Us
Tuesday, November 9 (8:00am – 9:30am) = RSVP #3 HERE.

Rethinking the Los Angeles Housing Paradigm, or How to Make the System Work For Us, and Not Against Us

Tuesday, November 9 (8:00am – 9:30am) = RSVP #3 HERE.

If affordable housing is a human, and civil, right, how do we fulfill that right for everyone? Join our distinguished panel as we discuss modifications to planning, zoning, and financing systems to look beyond traditional housing models and explore the opportunities inherent in newer, denser strategies.

Speakers:

Leonora Camner – Executive Director, Abundant Housing Los Angeles
Eric Hecht – President, HMMY Property Management Corp.

Emma G. Howard – Planning Director, Office of Councilmember Kevin de León
Arturo Yanez, AIA, LEED AP – Partner, FSY Architects

Dan Tenenbaum – Founding Principal, Pacific Crest Real Estate

Tracy Stone, AIA – Principal, Tracy A. Stone Architect (moderator)

RSVP #3 HERE.

• What new or innovative housing strategies are you interested in? How do you think these would help to address the current housing shortage?
• What would need to change with respect to the zoning code in order to make these a real option
• Have you ever used government financing for a multi-family project? If so, what complexities did it add to the project? If not, was that a conscious decision?
• If Property Tax Rule 140(a)(1) and (2) (requiring that projects use government financing in order to qualify for property tax exemption) were removed, what would the impact be on your projects?
• Do you see any benefit to current laws that allow by-right projects for rent-restricted tenants to get benefits only if they utilize public financing? Is there a downside to allowing them to get the same benefits with private financing?

Leonora Camner – Executive Director, Abundant Housing Los Angeles

Leonora leads the organization day to day, helping to build the movement to house LA. In addition to being a YIMBY, Leonora is a believer in RHNA, the housing element process, and the need to create funding for housing subsidies.

Leonora has been a member and volunteer of Abundant Housing LA since 2016. She is a long-time advocate for more housing and more affordable housing. She is currently serving on the Santa Monica Housing Commission.

Outside of Abundant Housing LA, Leonora is a mom of two girls. She is also on the board of Random Access Democracy, a democratic lottery advocacy organization. Previously, she was an attorney working in the non-profit sector to defend tenants from eviction. Additionally, she worked for the No on Measure LV Campaign in Santa Monica against an extreme anti-development ballot measure. She graduated from the University of Texas School of Law. For undergraduate studies, she attended New York University.

Eric Hecht – CEO, HMMY Property Management Corp.

– Manager of Garden District Investments, LLC
-Pursuing the legitimization of cannabis through strategically acquired and legally compliant commercial properties.
– Owner/CEO of HMMY Property Management Corporation
-Leading teams on real estate development projects including but not limited to multi-residential apartment buildings, small lot subdivision homes, and commercial warehouses.
– CA Licensed Real Estate Broker and Contractor

Emma G. Howard – Planning Director, Office of Councilmember Kevin de León

Emma Howard is a land use planner, currently Director of Planning for LA City Councilmember Kevin de León. She has previously served the 4th Council District, worked at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and at the LA County Department of Regional Planning.

Arturo Yanez, AIA, LEED AP – Partner, FSY Architects

Arturo leads the design and planning effort for FSY Architects in Los Angeles. He has extensive national and international design and construction experience in housing, educational, cultural, and arts and entertainment projects, many of which have received recognition for their excellence in design. Over the past 24 years, Arturo has directed affordable housing projects ranging in scope from 20 to 200 units for various populations including seniors, families, the developmentally disabled, survivors of domestic violence, at-risk youth, supportive housing for homeless individuals, mixed income housing, and housing for homeless veterans, the majority of which have been in the City of Los Angeles. Currently, he is overseeing construction of 500 units in various LA communities, including Watts, Boyle Heights, Hyde Park, and El Sereno.

As a California licensed contractor, Arturo directs FSY’s design / build practice as one fluid creative process wherein the concept and idea directing a project is accurately translated into the finished construction. He is a LEED Accredited Professional and is deeply committed to creating buildings that employ principles of sustainability and environmentally sound design in response to their contextual settings. He is past chair of the Lincoln Heights/ El Sereno-Berkshire HPOZ Board, past president of the AIA San Fernando Valley chapter, and a member of the Southern California Association of Non-Profit Housing. With a strong commitment to preserving and enhancing the livability of Los Angeles communities, Arturo’s experienced leadership and personal involvement ensure a focused vision supported with a high level of design and construction knowledge.

Arturo holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture from the University of California at Berkeley and attended the University of California, Los Angeles School of Architecture and Urban Planning for his master’s degree in architecture.

Tracy Stone, AIA – Principal, Tracy A. Stone Architect (moderator)

Tracy received a BA from Cornell University in New York and a Masters in Architecture from the University of Texas at Austin. She spent five years working for award-winning architects Raymond and Finn Kappe before receiving her architectural license in 1989 and subsequently started her own firm, Tracy A. Stone Architect, in 1991.

Tracy is an AIA member, a LEED Accredited Professional, and an approved Historical Consultant through the City of Los Angeles. When not at work, Tracy can be found reliving her Hawaiian roots by hula dancing at the local luau or bouncing down rough desert roads on the way to a secluded campsite.

Dan Tenenbaum – Founding Principal, Pacific Crest Real Estate

Dan Tenenbaum is the founding principal of Pacific Crest Real Estate (PCR). Since 1995, he has overseen all PCR activities including the acquisition and management of multifamily housing in Los Angeles. Under his leadership he has acquired real estate holdings valued at over $200 million and managed over 1,300 apartment units. Mr. Tenenbaum is the Past Chair of the California Apartment Association (CAA) Los Angeles Advisory Council and a member of the CAA State Board in Sacramento, where he is a member of its Legislative Steering Committee that reviews all proposed housing-related legislation in the State Legislature.

In 2016 Daniel was appointed by the Mayor of Los Angeles as a commissioner of the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles, a $1.4 billion organization that provides housing subsidies and programs for low income and homeless individuals. HACLA also oversees the management of over 58,000 subsidized apartment units, making it the third largest landlord in the city. He was reappointed in September 2019 for a 4-year term and is currently Vice-Chair of its Board of Commissioners.

Daniel obtained his master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s of commerce degree from McGill University. While at McGill, he was President of the Student Society, representing over 25,000 undergraduate and graduate students.

Daniel resides in Los Angeles with his 2 daughters. He is fluent in French and conversant in Spanish, Danish and Hebrew.