SYMPOSIUM
The Vienna Model: Social Housing for the 21st Century
September 13th, 2019 | 1:00 – 6:00 pm
@University of Maryland, School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation
International experts from Vienna joined local representatives of the university, non-profit organizations, architects, planners, policy advocates and political leaders from both Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties to exchange views on the current challenges and exemplary practices of social housing. Experts compared the social housing system in Vienna with the affordable housing efforts in the United States and thus sparked a dialogue about lessons-learned along with ideas for future policy decisions.
The importance of this dialogue is reflected in America's low-income housing crisis. Homelessness has risen for the second year in a row, following a six-year decline. For a quarter of all renters and for more than half of very low-income renters, housing costs now account for more than half of household expenditures, yet only a quarter of those eligible to receive federal housing assistance on the basis of income actually receive it. Politicians and activists are paying attention to these trends, and several major Democratic candidates for president have proposed bold reforms of the American housing policy apparatus.
Kibel Gallery
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Ceremonial Exhibition Opening
Don Linebaugh, Dean ad interim and Professor
Ronit Eisenbach, Professor of Architecture, Kibel Galley Chair
Michael Stangl, Deputy Director of the Vienna Housing Agency Wiener Wohnen
Architecture Building Auditorium
2:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Welcome & Introduction: Why is Social Housing Critical Today?
Don Linebaugh, Dean ad interim and Professor
Hans Riemer, Montgomery County, Maryland, Council Member
Dannielle Glaros, Prince George County, Maryland, Council Member
Kurt Stürzenbecher, City of Vienna, Austria, Council Member; Chairman of the Committee on Finance, Economy, Digitalization and International Affairs
2:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Session I Past and Present: Social Housing in Vienna and the United States
Moderator: Casey Dawkins, Professor and Director, Urban Studies and Planning and PhD Programs, University of Maryland
Michael Stangl, Deputy Director of the Vienna Housing Agency Wiener Wohnen
Josef Cser, Incoming Director of Wohnservice Wien, organization for housing issues in the City of Vienna
Willow Lung-Amam, Associate Professor, Urban Studies and Planning Program; Director of Community Development, National Center for Smart Growth
Casey Anderson, Chair, Montgomery County Planning Board
3:30 – 4:15 p.m.
Session II The Intersection of Financing, Policy, and Planning: Lessons from Vienna
Moderator: Gerrit Knaap, Executive Director, National Center for Smart Growth, University of Maryland
Kurt Stürzenbecher, City of Vienna, Austria, Council Member; Chairman of the Committee on Finance, Economy, Digitalization and International Affairs
Aseem Nigam, Director, Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs
Matt Heckles, Assistant Secretary at State of Maryland, Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD)
4:15 – 4:30 p.m.
Coffee Break (Hall between Gallery and Auditorium)
Architecture Building Great Space
4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
Session III Design: Case Studies in Social Housing & Urban Design
Moderator: Ronit Eisenbach, Professor of Architecture; Kibel Gallery Chair; Director, Creative Placemaking Collaborative, National Center for Smart Growth, University of Maryland
4:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Katharina Bayer, Architect, partner at einszueins architektur, Vienna
5:00 – 5:45 p.m.
D.C. and Maryland Architects
Suzane Reatig, Suzane Reatig Architecture
Garth Rockcastle, Professor of Architecture, University of Maryland, Principal, MS&R
Evan Goldman, Developer/Architect, EYA
5:45 – 6:00 p.m.
Questions and Discussion
Kibel Gallery
6:00 – 7: 00 p.m.
Reception: Wine and Hors d’Oeuvres