Gareth Orsmond Presents at APA Zoning Workshop

BOSTON - March 26, 2015 - PRLog -- Rackemann attorney Gareth Orsmond recently served as faculty for a workshop presented by the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Planning Association, the nation’s premier organization of urban and municipal planning professionals. The topic of the workshop was inclusionary zoning ordinances, which require affordable housing to be included in new residential and multi-use developments or, in some cases, allow for payment in lieu of providing the affordable housing.

The half-day workshop comprised six sessions, featuring presentations on various issues surrounding affordable housing by planning professionals, attorneys, government officials, and real estate developers.  Gareth, who regularly assists towns, regional agencies and developers with affordable housing issues as part of his legal practice, was asked to focus his presentation on communicating a developer’s perspective on inclusionary zoning.

After making his presentation, Gareth participated in a panel discussion with Michael Roberts, a Senior Vice-President at AvalonBay Communities, and Philip Giffee, Executive Director of Neighborhood of Affordable Housing, Inc., a Boston based community development corporation. The panel addressed questions from the audience of planning professionals concerning developers’ perspectives on inclusionary zoning, financing, and other incentives to help develop affordable housing.

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