Housing Onward: June Update

1000friendsofwisco
2 days ago
2 min read

By Ken Smith, Housing Policy Director

hand waving small American flag against sky background

Happy July everyone, and as we celebrate the 250^th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, lest we not forget it is also the hundredth anniversary of the seminal United States Supreme Court case, Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty Co. (1926), whose constitutionality of zoning has had a profound impact on our human habitats, but also gives us great opportunity to channel the zoning power for social good.

What I’m Watching (Should housing be a place to live, or a commodity?):

Patrick Boyle (YouTube): “The Real Reason Why You Can’t Afford a House”
How Money Works (YouTube): “bUt ThAt"s mY NeSt eGG!”
Pew (YouTube): “Building More Housing Creates ‘Moving Chains’ of Affordability”

What I’m Reading:

Smart Growth America: The true cost of a home: Housing, transportation, energy, and insurance
Pew: Pew Applauds Passage of Bipartisan Housing Legislation
Pew: Building Homes Near Jobs, Stores, and Transit Saves Public Dollars
WUWM: “‘How to Evict Your Landlord’ update: Tomblin to lose control of more than 80 properties”

On June 1, the entire housing team convened in Stevens Point with Executive Director Trevor Roark. It was the first time the housing team was together in person! We met the following morning at a local coffee shop to participate in a climate café, where we discussed among other things, how addressing the housing challenge may have climate implications. However, the primary purpose of our convening was to meet with UW-Stevens Point Center for Land Use Education’s Rebecca Roberts to discuss the Center’s Zone! Game, which will likely make an appearance at our upcoming Community Housing Academy. Later that day, we also took the time to see downtown Stevens Point and all the housing development opportunities available in the downtown on parcels whose buildings were razed long ago to create a plethora of parking.

Ken Smith Housing Policy Director visits Washington DC for Smart Growth America conference in June 2026

The following week, Mr. Smith went to Washington! I flew to Washington, D.C. to participate in the Smart Growth America Center for Zoning Solutions meeting on June 10. There I met people from organizations around the country focused on how municipal zoning power can be harnessed to produce more housing, affordable housing, and housing types. The theme for the meeting was discussion of the draft “Zoning Solutions for Housing: Place, Type, and Price: Reforms to support community health, prosperity and resilience.” Check out my blog here!

The next day, on June 11, Executive Director Trevor Roark attended the League of Wisconsin Municipalities’ Local Government Summit in Stevens Point, where Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos spoke on “the state-local relationship in Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Innovation Fund,” encouraging collaboration between local governments to address the local service needs of Wisconsin residents.

Later, on June 17, Transportation Analyst Raphie Torralba and I attended the Strong Towns of Metropolitan Milwaukee’s meeting, where they hosted Parking Reform Network founder and president, Tony Jordan, who gave a presentation on why mandatory parking minimums are arbitrary and not good policy for our municipalities, or for many development projects “penciling out.”