Written by Ejiro Ojeni. 

As New York City anticipates a mayoral election this fall, the city is grappling with both a climate emergency that threatens energy access and livability and a housing affordability emergency that is straining millions of households.

Rising temperatures, aging infrastructure, growing demand, and increasingly constrained sources of power are driving up energy costs and exposing low- and moderate-income households to disproportionate financial strain. In the last five years, 3.5 million New Yorkers (42%) have fallen behind on utility payments, and 1.9 million (23%) have experienced utility shutoffs because they could not pay their bills. Meanwhile, the cost of living continues to rise: nearly half of all NYC households spend more than 30% of their income on rent while nearly a third spend over 50%. The next mayor will need to mobilize a climate action agenda that responds to these pressures.

Reimagine Ravenswood provides a roadmap for public, private, and nonprofit partners to collaborate on addressing the nexus of climate and affordability at the neighborhood scale. The Ravenswood Generating Station is the largest fossil fuel plant in New York City, providing over 20% of the city’s local power capacity. The station sits across from NYCHA Ravenswood and Queensbridge, New York City’s largest protected affordable housing campuses, which have long faced local environmental justice challenges. Rise Light & Power (RISE) has developed plans to transform the station site into a renewable energy hub.

The Office of the Queens Borough President (QBPO) believed it was critical to ensure that the economic benefits of this transition extended to the local community, while also exploring how the redevelopment could catalyze broader quality-of-life improvements. To that end, the QBPO engaged HR&A to lead Reimagine Ravenswood, a community-driven planning process focused on site reuse, neighborhood improvement, and workforce development.

We led stakeholder engagement, including a steering committee, public workshops, focus groups, and a public survey. In partnership with Fu Wilmer Design, the team also conducted a physical site evaluation and an economic analysis to assess neighborhood socio-economic conditions and identify opportunities for workforce and business development in sectors such as green industry, small manufacturing, technology, life sciences, and the arts.

Guided by community insight, the client-consultant team developed strategies to ensure that Ravenswood’s transition to clean energy advances not only climate goals but also affordability and quality of life in the surrounding community. These strategies could be advanced by our next Mayor in neighborhoods across the city.

Ravenswood Generating Station (Image: Courtesy of Reimagine Ravenswood)

Deploying affordable, effective heating and cooling technology will reduce the energy burden for low-income residents.  Extreme heat events are becoming more frequent, more intense, and longer in New York City, and our findings show that the area immediately around the Ravenswood Generating Station, including Queensbridge Houses North and South, is already characterized by intense heat and high heat vulnerability due to a lack of green space, low rates of access to home air conditioning, and high surface temperature. Building off the momentum created by the successful heat pump pilot at Woodside Houses in 2023, the City could prioritize and accelerate the installation of window heat pumps in units at NYCHA Astoria, Queensbridge North and South, Ravenswood, Woodside Houses, and other vulnerable areas.

Alongside infrastructure improvements, the City should expand successful initiatives in underinvested schools and partner with local employers to create pathways to well-paying, high-quality jobs for residents. Partnerships between local nonprofits, schools, colleges, and City agencies are crucial for connecting residents to careers in growing industries, including the green economy. By scaling youth-focused initiatives across public schools in the area, such as FutureReadyNYC and Leading the Charge, the City can equip young people with real-world skills, paid work experience, early college credit, industry credentials, and personalized career guidance. Additionally, partnerships with renewable energy companies like Rise, cleantech firms, and business organizations can create clear career pathways, exposing students and residents to opportunities offered by the clean energy transition. Together, these efforts help residents afford to stay and thrive in their communities.

In addition to the strategies we’ve explored at Reimagine Ravenswood, there are other emerging opportunities — such as The City of Yes — that the next Mayor could leverage to create a new balance of affordable housing and jumpstart local economic activity.

One critical opportunity lies in making low-income communities healthier and more dignified places to live by addressing food access. During the engagement sessions, many community members, particularly NYCHA residents, voiced a strong desire for affordable grocery and food retail options. The City of Yes for Economic Opportunity already provides a mechanism to create new, larger-scale commercial spaces within NYCHA campuses, subject to public review and approval. This could enable existing grocery stores (such as Fine Far Supermarket) to expand and create space for new grocery providers. To move forward, the City, in collaboration with NYCHA residents and the local Community Board, should evaluate whether residents want additional commercial development on campus. If so, the new administration should consider enabling the expansion of existing grocery stores or the establishment of new food retail spaces.

The City could continue rethinking how traditional industrial areas are rezoned to allow more mixed-use affordable housing development. Under the City of Yes for Economic Opportunity, new “transition zones” make it more feasible to develop properties with light industrial and commercial uses on ground floors with residential above. In the future, industrially zoned areas in the neighborhood could apply for this rezoning to create both affordable housing and spaces for local job growth.

* * * * *

A neighborhood-centric approach to tackling climate and affordability challenges in tandem can lead to reduced energy costs, healthier living environments in affordable communities, economic opportunity, and community resilience. Reimagine Ravenswood charts a path for coordinated public, private, and nonprofit action — a roadmap the next Mayor can draw from in pursuing a future where affordable housing and a clean, livable environment are inseparable goals.

Community Engagement Event

Top Image: Courtesy of the Queens Borough President’s Office

Learn more about Reimagine Ravenswood here.

In celebration of NYC Climate Week, HR&A CEO Jeff Hébert joined the Adaptation Forum, hosted by The Resiliency Company, for a lightning talk alongside Daniel Kaniewski of Marsh McLennan and Janika McFeely of JLL to explore the question: how do we turn climate risk into resilient communities? The discussion underscored the urgent need to move beyond understanding risk toward building resilience in ways that strengthen communities, markets, and infrastructure.

Jeff shared insights from projects in New Orleans and Houston to articulate key themes in the work to build resilience. Takeaways include:

Developing resilient infrastructure requires alignment around a clearly articulated vision and depends on bringing together public, private, institutional, and philanthropic partners that each play a role. Their collective action is essential for advancing impactful solutions.

Cities and municipalities must adapt to new project delivery methods, embrace innovative operations and maintenance practices, and pursue creative funding tools. These shifts will be critical for meeting the demands of climate resilience at scale.

Resilient infrastructure generates shared economic benefits and can provide the foundation for funding new investments, making resilience not only a protective measure but also an engine for sustainable growth.

Addressing climate risk is about more than adaptation — it is about building stronger, more sustainable communities for the future.

Learn more about NYC Climate Week.

Written by Jeff Hébert, CEO

Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall in New Orleans, forever changing the city, the Gulf Coast region, and how we think about disaster response.

So many of us from Louisiana knew we had to go home. We had no real plan, just the certainty that we needed to be there. In those early days after the storm, our world narrowed to what was right in front of us — our families, our neighbors, and our immediate community. New Orleans was heavy with grief and uncertainty. Relief systems were inadequate and overwhelmed.

Yet in the middle of that chaos, something else emerged: human resolve. Residents became rescuers, teachers became community leaders, and strangers became family.

Days turned into years, and many of us, myself included, ended up dedicating our careers to the long-term recovery of New Orleans and helping other communities prepare and respond to disaster.

I’m proud that HR&A and so many of you in our extended community continue to support New Orleans in building a more equitable and resilient city.

After two decades and countless other catastrophic events in communities around the country, we’ve learned that true recovery isn’t about getting back to how things were. It’s about building something better for the people who call that place home.

The lessons from Hurricane Katrina are universal and should continue to shape our response to every community facing the unthinkable:

• • Preparedness is everything. Waiting for disaster to strike is too late. Proactive resilience must be built into infrastructure, planning, and leadership.
  • • Listen to communities. Locals know what they need. If recovery doesn’t involve them, it fails them.
    • • Leadership requires humility and decisiveness. You can’t have all the answers, but you must be willing to act and demonstrate progress.
      • • Disasters expose inequity. The levee breaks didn’t just flood a city, they revealed systemic cracks we couldn’t afford to ignore.
        • • The bonds between people are the strongest foundation. Again and again, people show up and find a way to fill the gap where resources fall short. But long-term resilience requires proper support.

           

          As we mark this anniversary, let’s not only remember what was lost, but recommit to the work that remains. There are hard lessons that still haven’t been learned. Let’s also take a moment to reflect on what Katrina and subsequent events have exposed about who gets left behind and what it will take to ensure every community has the chance to not just survive, but thrive.

HR&A Partner Amitabh Barthakur will join industry leaders at the AIA Las Vegas Placemaking Summit — Momentum: Where Change Takes Shape.

This year’s summit will bring together developers, planners, architects, policymakers, and community leaders to explore innovative, sustainable, and resilient approaches to shaping vibrant, livable communities.

Amitabh will speak in Session 5, focusing on Transit-Oriented Development. He will explore innovative funding and financing solutions as well as transit’s role in building connected, livable cities.

Learn More!

Congratulations to the grocery project leaders in Venice, Champaign, Roodhouse, Marion, Aledo, Rockford, and Galesburg on securing $10 million in funding through the Illinois Grocery Initiative! These grants will help combat food deserts across the state by supporting the construction and renovation of new grocery stores, as well as covering many first-year operational costs.

HR&A is proud to have supported the Venice Revitalization Project in preparing their successful grant application. We’re excited to see how a municipally-owned grocery store can expand access to affordable, healthy food for the residents of Venice!

Learn more about the Illinois Grocery Initiative.

“The Sacramento City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the Forward Together Action Plan, a community-engaged initiative that outlines priorities aimed at enhancing the quality of life and fostering economic growth opportunities for residents and businesses along the Marysville-Del Paso Boulevard corridor.”

Read more about our work supporting the Marysville-Del Paso Blvd Plan in this article from the Sacramento City Express.

The Design Trust for Public Space, established in 1995, has been a transformative force in unlocking the potential of New York City’s public spaces. The non-profit organization is a nationally-recognized incubator that works closely with design professionals, community organizations, and city agencies to reshape the landscape of all five boroughs—from parks and plazas to streets and public buildings.

Congratulations to HR&A Principal Thomas Jansen on being named the Vice Chair of the Board of Directors at the organization. We look forward to the Design Trust’s continued impact on New York City and Thomas’s contributions to the organization’s mission in this new role.

In 2024, we worked on projects across nearly 200 communities in the US and abroad. Here are just a few examples of our recent work in action. 

We helped state broadband offices secure federal funding that gives people the skills they need to effectively use the Internet.

We celebrated the creation of over 20k affordable homes since the launch of the Amazon Equity Fund and convened in Seattle to celebrate an additional $1.4b in funding to support thousands of additional units.

We hosted foster youth leaders in our New York office, where they presented to Councilmember Rita Joseph, the Administration for Children’s Services Commission, and philanthropic leaders. We’re working with Youth Advisory Board, The Center for Fair Futures, Children’s Village, and Good River Partners on a report set for release this year, about how to finance housing, at scale, for young people aging out of the foster system.

All in Allegheny

Since taking office early last year, we helped Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato engage 19,000 residents to understand their priorities. Just six months later, the administration has delivered on 91% of the community’s action items within the All In Allegheny Action Plan, addressing issues such as housing affordability, expanding voting access, and enhancing health-focused crisis response.

Unsplash

Across the country, we’re helping reimagine the future of city business districts, including Atlanta, Boston, San Francisco, and more. After working with the City of Boston to launch their Office to Residential Conversion Program, Mayor Michelle Wu and Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced an extension to the program along with $15 million in funding to incentivize converting large-scale office buildings into housing.

Downtown Detroit Partnership

We’re working with the Downtown Detroit Partnership (DDP) to shape an alternative vision for the Michigan Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) I-375 project, which aims to transform a one-mile freeway into a pedestrian-friendly boulevard, restoring connections in the heart of Detroit.

Carlos Horton

HR&A supported the revitalization of Ciudad Colonial in Santo Domingo and helped reimagine two iconic cultural landmarks — the Convento de San Francisco and Mercado Modelo. The project aimed to preserve the district’s historic significance while fostering economic growth and community engagement.

Creatives New York

“New York Isn’t New York Without Artists” is a policy playbook we created for Creatives Rebuild New York which outlines key steps for New York State and local governments to support artists and creative workers, who are vital to the state’s $144 billion cultural sector.

Sergey Novikov

We’re working with the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) to develop an implementation program framework that will guide design development for the New Pennsylvania Avenue Plan.

BIG

We’re helping transform Connecticut’s Manresa Island from an abandoned industrial site into a 125-acre public park and community hub.

Unsplash

HR&A is supporting the City and County of Honolulu to assess climate-related financial risks and define strategies for funding and budgeting vital adaptation measures. As climate hazards like coastal erosion, flooding, and hurricanes become more frequent and severe, this initiative marks a significant opportunity for Honolulu to safeguard its future by investing in resilient infrastructure and long-term solutions.