HR&A Advisors and our partner Needs Map Global organized a tour in Madrid, Spain, on behalf of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for a delegation from the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality (AMM). The visit is part of HR&A’s ongoing Land Value Capture (LVC) Opportunities Study for EBRD and AMM, as AMM plans to expand its metro network over the next decade with EBRD’s financial and technical support. 

At HR&A, we believe that cities thrive when public investment and private development work in concert to deliver lasting public benefit. Our work on land value capture brings this principle to life—helping local governments design financing and policy tools that make major infrastructure investments both financially viable and socially equitable.

It was fantastic to see how this is taking shape in Madrid. Our tour focused on how Madrid integrates transit investment, urban regeneration, and land value capture through flagship initiatives such as:

• • • • Madrid Calle 30 & Madrid Río Park: A transformative project that buried a 10 km section of the M-30 ring road to create a linear park and unlock adjacent redevelopment opportunities.
      • Madrid Nuevo Norte: A long-term rail yard redevelopment anchored by a regional mobility hub, demonstrating how public leadership and private delivery can generate district-scale value creation.
      • MetroSur (Line 12): A circumferential metro line connecting multiple southern municipalities, catalyzing station-area development and expanding access to jobs and services.

     

    Through these visits, the delegation observed how well-designed public investments can unlock surrounding land value and how fit-for-purpose delivery models—such as Spain’s Junta de Compensación, a legal corporate entity charged with executing urban planning intitiatives—align public and private incentives by organizing landowners to finance and deliver infrastructure in exchange for development rights.
    

    These insights now inform the next phase of our work: identifying the most effective LVC tools and projecting potential revenues to support urban regeneration in three AMM-selected pilot areas along planned metro corridors. 

     

    We extend our sincere thanks to our hosts and colleagues in Madrid for their time and generosity: Ayuntamiento de Madrid, Comunidad de Madrid, Crea Madrid Nuevo Norte, Metro de Madrid, and TYPSA. We look forward to translating these lessons into action in Ankara. 

     

As US cities grapple with the effects of climate change, they’re also facing growing housing affordability challenges. Decarbonizing existing buildings lies at the heart of these dual crises, but in large cities like New York, there are significant barriers we need to address to make decarbonization possible.  

The only practical way to decarbonize existing building stock is through significant investments, which are expensive and risk increasing occupancy costs. To add an additional layer of complexity, funding for these investments is limited.  

One of our favorite things to do at HR&A is to roll up our sleeves alongside the smartest people working to address issues facing cities and turn our good ideas into workable solutions. We recently hosted a salon-style conversation in our New York Office about this topic and developed a few solutions to move the needle: 

1. Partner for Regulatory Innovation: Although local and regional resources are limited, we cannot wait for new policy directions from Washington. Removing local regulatory barriers is the most robust, plausible, short-term response. We still need to consider the actual risks that decarbonization technologies present, especially in the context of other risks routinely accepted or “grandfathered” by regulators. Simultaneously, we must lay the foundation for a longer-term strategy at the state and federal levels. 
2. Frame Investments around Improving Quality of Life: There is a strong need for explicit connections between investments in decarbonization and investments in housing quality. For example, investing in heat pumps improves the quality of life for tenants by increasing their control over heating and cooling while also lowering carbon emissions. This type of investment creates opportunities for pooling funds and batching work for greater impact. The pitch to policy makers, funders, and residents is focused on comfort, health, and equity, not climate mitigation. 
3. Focus on Technology: There are opportunities to focus on technology as a way to speed deployment, reduce construction costs, and expand impact. For example, there are products coming to market that enable faster installations and minimize costs since they don’t require specialized equipment or labor. Technology shifts will continue making products better (in terms of greater efficiency and lower cost) and are also creating new opportunities to make this industry more accessible to a wider range of workers.

While funding challenges remain a significant barrier, there are additional tools in a city’s toolkit that can help streamline the process for decarbonization efforts and make the solutions more financially feasible for building owners. We look forward to continuing the conversation and exploring other ways we can move the climate needle in New York and beyond.  

If you’re interested in exploring this topic further, we encourage you to read a new report — Decarbonizing NYC Co-ops: A Local Law 97 Compliance Roadmap — the result of a ULI Technical Assistance Panel chaired by HR&A Partner Jonathan Meyers and other industry leaders. The report was recently featured in Crain’s New York Business and Smart Cities Dive.  

By Sharon Carney 

The federal Opportunity Zones (OZ) incentive, first established in 2017 as part of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act, was extended and revised in The One Big Beautiful Bill Act in 2025. As a result, next year, governors will nominate the next round of census tracts that will be eligible to receive OZ investment, shaping where private capital can flow for the following decade. Many of these governors will seek input from local officials. As states and local government consider which census tracts to nominate as Opportunity Zones, they should keep several factors in mind.

First, understand what this tool is, and what it isn’t. 

• • It’s a by-right tax incentive, not a community development program. At its most basic, OZ is a tax incentive for investors with capital gains to invest in places with low household income or high poverty. Those investments can support qualifying real estate projects or operating businesses, but to get the tax benefit, there is no requirement that investments yield community benefits, such as new amenities or housing that existing residents can afford, or for investors to seek approval from state or local governments. In short – OZ is a tool, and the user have a lot of discretion about how to use it. While data on OZ investments made to date are limited, we can infer from recent Urban Institute research that these investments are largely producing multifamily rental housing and mixed-use real estate projects.
  • It’s competitive. The incentive gives investors tax relief on profits they have already made, as well as profits that they make via their OZ investment. Thus, profit-oriented investors will seek opportunities to maximize their earnings when choosing where to make their OZ investment. While some taxpayers with capital gains are mission-driven or socially conscious, the majority favor projects in places well positioned to appreciate in value with the least risk. In short, just because a place needs investment does not mean that an OZ designation will be powerful enough to attract those resources, as investors have options across the country to consider. 

   

  So… how should States prioritize census tract nominations?  

• Balance need and opportunity. First, review socioeconomic and market data, plans that articulate local development priorities, and zoning to determine whether there is a need for the incentive and enough opportunity to use it. For example, does the area need what this tool typically delivers (mixed-use real estate market-rate or workforce housing), and does current local zoning allow it? A  census tract zoned for single family and parks will likely provide limited potential for incentive utilization. Do projects that need equity investment in the area need help securing capital? Data review should go beyond baseline socioeconomic indicators; consider real estate absorption and what’s already in the development pipeline, underutilized parcels, share of households facing rent burdens, and availability of existing incentives at tract level. 

   

  Local stakeholder input is also key — not just local government, but community development organizations, neighborhood representatives, locally active developers and landowners, and potential project sponsors. These perspectives can inform the questions about both need and opportunities.
  This post from the District of Columbia, where I led local implementation of Opportunity Zones 1.0, provides some examples of how to approach new designations. While this approach anticipated that OZs would be more useful than  they turned out to be for operating businesses, many of the principles described still apply. (Check out the 43-minute mark of this recent webinar from Economic Innovation Group if you prefer description by video, along with other great nomination advice.)

   

  Identify opportunities to advance public economic development projects. As more state and local governments face budget pressures due to the shifting federal funding landscape, public assets like land are increasingly important resources for economic development. OZ is a tool that can help unlock their potential. If I was a governor (or mayor for that matter) I would want to know the redevelopment potential of every parcel in my portfolio, alongside that of other parcels owned by public entities. The OZ incentive is a good opportunity to advance public-private partnerships, as projects involving donated public land can provide attractive opportunities for appreciation while enabling government leaders to ensure community benefits and transparency – particularly when paired with other local, state or federal incentives. Take stock of your project pipeline, but also parcels that could be in the pipeline in the next 5-10 years, now that the OZ incentive is permanent. HR&A has helped states, local governments, transit agencies, school districts and other public landowners across the country develop comprehensive asset inventories, evaluate parcels for buildability, and develop transaction and financing strategies that yield new affordable homes, community-serving amenities and tax revenue-generating uses.

   

  Create a policy environment that supports investment without displacement. One of the most important things states can do in anticipation of the OZ nomination process is cultivate a policy environment in which development is informed by and benefits local communities — regardless of whether OZ capital is involved. Many policy experts and practitioners [fairly] criticize the OZ policy for its lack of community benefit requirements and transparency, and its potential to spur displacement. Many of these concerns can be applicable to private development more generally, and state/local governments have tools to mitigate such risks. For example: 

  • • • Inclusionary zoning policies can ensure that homes for people earning lower incomes are included in private developments;
      • Right-of-first-refusal and opportunity to purchase policies can give mission-driven entities opportunities to purchase before properties become available to the wider market; 
      • Property tax relief can protect income-restricted homeowners, tenants or commercial tenants from increasing property taxes; 
      • Updates to comprehensive/master plans — which guide all development — should require community engagement and happen at least every 10 years in most cases; 
      • Development approval processes can incorporate publicized opportunities for local resident input; 
      • Local government can build a culture of data-driven and regular outreach and communication to raise awareness of available resources to residents who may be most vulnerable to changes resulting from investment.  

  Every community is unique and will need to weigh what is legally feasible and what the market will sustain. But every governor should be asking municipalities how development in their jurisdiction is informed by community priorities and consider State action to require it — including making such a strategy a requirement for Census tract nominations. 

   

  Don’t Miss the Opportunity 
  While OZ may not achieve every policy objective, it is the federal government’s most significant effort to direct capital to distressed areas, and state and local leaders shouldn’t skip the chance to think strategically about census tract nominations. Don’t miss the chance to refine this economic development tool for maximum local benefit..  

   

  
  This post describes ideas Sharon originally shared in Urban Institute’s Opportunity Zones webinar in October 2025. For the full panel discussion, please visit the site to learn more. 

Congratulations to the City of Austin, LifeWorks Austin, Travis County, and the many partners behind today’s release of Dismantling the Foster Care to Homelessness Pipeline in Austin, Texas—a landmark 10-point plan to create 2,000 new housing opportunities for young people in response to a significant increase in youth homelessness in Austin over the past five years.

Earlier this year, the City of Austin and LifeWorks – with support from HR&A Advisors and Good River Partners – launched a task force that brought together partners from the City, Travis County, the State of Texas, community, philanthropy, affordable housing development, public housing authorities, advocacy organizations, and academia to create new momentum, unlock new investment, and sustain regional coordination to end the foster care to homelessness pipeline in Austin.

“I am impressed with the clear-eyed commitment and creativity driving this plan, and believe Austin can be a national model in its work to make sure no dollar is left on the table that could be used to address the housing needs of young people impacted by the child welfare system,” said Sarah Solon, Senior Principal at HR&A Advisors.

Read the full report here.

Thank you to the Taks Force members for your partnership: Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, David Gray, Liz Schoenfeld, Ph.D., Daniel Heimpel, Commissioner Ann Howard, Cortney Jones, MSW, and Jordan Scott.

Related articles: 

Austin’s youth homelessness has quadrupled since 2020; how the city plans to reduce it — Yahoo News

We recently celebrated our 10th anniversary since officially opening our Texas office in our new home in Downtown Dallas at Radiance Plaza. Thank you to all our clients, collaborators, and friends who joined us for the celebration and the many others who have been our close partners over the last 10 years. We are looking forward to many more decades serving Texas! 

For the fourth year in a row, HR&A Advisors was proud to partner with LISC San Antonio to offer Affordable Housing Finance 101. This year, HR&A Principal Peter Brewton led over 30 public and non-profit professionals through the intricacies of affordable housing financing—from sizing senior debt and estimating LIHTC equity proceeds to piecing together complex financing structures to close gaps and make critical deals happen.

It was inspiring to collaborate with friends and colleagues from Opportunity Home San Antonio, City of San Antonio Neighborhood and Housing Services Department, Bexar County Economic & Community Development, VIA Metropolitan Transit, San Antonio Housing Trust, Merced Housing Texas, Alamo Community Group, and LISC Houston. Together, we’re building local capacity to deliver much-needed affordable housing in San Antonio.

A special thank you to Wells Fargo for sponsoring the training and to Opportunity Home San Antonio for hosting.

We’re looking forward to joining clients, collaborators, thought leaders, and changemakers at the Urban Land Institute’s 2025 Fall Meeting in San Francisco.. As the industry comes together to exchange ideas and shape the future of cities, our team will share insights from decades of work at the intersection of real estate, economic development, and resilience.

Speaking Engagements: 

Derek Fleming will participate in San Francisco: A City of Neighborhoods — Lightning Round (Nov 5, 9:00–10:30 am) providing an overview of Mission Bay, a successful public-private partnership anchored by UCSF and home to major employers like OpenAI, Visa, and Uber.

Kate Wittels will join Symbiosis Under Strain: How Cities and Universities Are Adapting Growth in Uncertain Times (Nov 5, 10:30–11:30 am), discussing new models for collaboration, funding, and urban growth between cities and universities.

Kate Collignon will speak on Doom Loop to Boom Loop: Is San Francisco on the Brink of the Next Gold Rush? (Nov 5, 4:00–5:00 pm), exploring strategies from a recent ULI Advisory Services panel on how to revitalize post-pandemic downtown San Francisco.

Connect with all of our HR&A attendees at the Fall meeting:

Mason Ailstock — Partner, Atlanta, University Development and Innovation Council

Amitabh Barthakur — Partner, Los Angeles, ULI Public/Private Partnership Council

Kate Collignon — Partner, San Francisco, ULI Public Development and Infrastructure Council

Cary Hirschstein — Partner, New York

Eric Rothman — Founding Partner, New York, ULI Public/Private Partnership Council

Stan Wall — Partner, Washington, DC, ULI Transit Oriented Development Council

Kate Wittels — Partner, New York

Derek Fleming — Senior Advisor, New York

Carl Weisbrod — Senior Advisor, New York, ULI Public/Private Partnership Council

Thomas Jansen — Principal, New York, ULI Urban Revitalization Council

Ada Peng — Principal, Los Angeles

Daniel Warwick — Principal, Washington, DC

This press release was originally issued by ULI New York.

Report highlights importance of understanding Local Law 97 as a 25-year pathway to decarbonization; outlines opportunities to boost interagency collaboration, expand educational tools, and shift financing and regulatory frameworks.

NEW YORK – October 23, 2025 — The Urban Land Institute New York (ULI NY) and the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) released a report today, entitled Decarbonizing NYC Co-ops: A Local Law 97 Compliance Roadmap. The report shares a wide range of recommendations emerging from a ULI New York Technical Assistance Panel (TAP) — a two-day workshop of cross-disciplinary real estate and industry experts that was hosted in May 2025.

Last week, Senior Advisor Derek Fleming attended the grand opening of The Pillars,  Audible’s newest retail hub and a major milestone in downtown Newark’s revitalization.

Located on the ground floor of 33 Washington Street, The Pillars represents Audible’s largest community investment to date, a 15,000-square-foot space that brings together small businesses, wellness, and creativity. Through its Business Attraction Program, Audible is supporting local entrepreneurs with funding, mentorship, and opportunities to grow in the heart of Newark’s Arts and Education District.

HR&A is honored to have supported Audible in crafting the retail vision and strategy for this transformative initiative, which repurposes a long-vacant property into a dynamic hub of economic activity and community vitality in downtown Newark.

Congratulations to the Audible team and all the partners who brought this transformative project to life!

Related articles:

Audible Unveils The Pillars Retail Hub In Newark — New Jersey Urban News