Hawaiʻi State Senate to host virtual event on social housing today

Sen. Stanley Chang said the purpose of the seminar is to educate housing stakeholders and the public on the concept of social housing.
HONOLULU — On Wednesday, Nov. 15, the chair of the Senate Committee on Housing, Ninth District Sen. Stanley Chang will host a virtual event, “The Rise of Social Housing in America.”
The seminar from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. will discuss common housing issues faced in Hawaiʻi and the entire nation, and how other countries have implemented social housing solutions.
The seminar’s Zoom link is: tinyurl.com/2023housingconf.
“The housing shortage is Hawaiʻi’s most urgent crisis, but existing tools are inadequate to solve the problem,” said Senator Chang. “Luckily, innovative models like social housing, a financially sustainable and mixed income form of government-built housing, have been successful across the country and right here in Hawaiʻi. This conference hopes to educate housing stakeholders and the public on this promising concept.”
This event will feature various experts, including Director Scott Bruton (Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs), Director Chelsea Andrews (Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County), Assembly Member Alex Lee (California State Assembly), Director Adam Roversi (Kauaʻi County Housing Agency), Director Hakim Ouansafi (Hawaiʻi Public Housing Authority), Michael Lam (Hunt Development), Jared Everett (Greystar), Lance Wilhelm (Wilhelm Group), Francesca Mari (New York Times Magazine), Sen. Scott Wiener (California State Senate), Maui Sen. Troy Hashimoto, Deputy Director Joe Campos (Hawaiʻi Department of Human Services), and Executive Director Dean Minakami (Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corporation).
This conference aims to bring stakeholders together to look to recent success stories in social housing as well as to discuss approaches and challenges to housing accessibility.