From Disinvestment to Renewal: Reimagining NYC Public Housing

This event, hosted by the AIANY Civic Leadership Program, will examine the history and current state of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), analyze emerging social housing models, and discuss how architects can play a role in shaping equitable, sustainable reinvestment strategies.

The Civic Leaders will convene a panel representing different approaches to affordable housing such as NYCHA’s Permanent Affordability Commitment Together (PACT) program and the movement toward social housing. The panel and additional participants will address the unprecedented public housing crisis facing New York City after decades of federal and local disinvestment, explore ways to rethink governance, finance, design frameworks for public housing, and discuss the power and perils of resident experiences.

Architects/designers should come away from the event with a deeper understanding of the architect’s role in advancing social equity and sustainability through advocacy, design innovation, and collaboration with communities and public agencies.

This event will provide an opportunity to explore solutions that reframe housing as a public good rather than a commodity.

Leading the event from this year’s CLP cohort are Rashida Momoh, Kevin Davis, Ayana Smith, and Bradley DeBose.

Speakers:
Allison Lane, AIA, NOMA, ASID, NCARB, NCIDQ, LEED AP, WELL AP, Senior Associate and Housing Studio Lead, AECOM
Joy Sinderbrand, WEDG, Senior Vice President for Capital Programs, NYCHA

About the Speakers:
Allison Lane is a Senior Associate and Housing Studio Lead at the global engineering and design firm AECOM. Her 16+ years of experience spans award-winning architecture, interior design, and real estate development projects across 7+ million square feet of property, totaling over $6 billion in construction costs across multiple sectors. With a passion for affordable housing and community building, Allison leads AECOM USA’s first formalized multifamily studio, managing projects for both private developers and public agencies across markets, including the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). Recent NYCHA projects include serving as a Design Program Manager for the Comprehensive Modernization updates at multiple locations and the Program Manager for the 2023-2027 Physical Needs Assessment of the Authority’s $78.3 billion portfolio-wide capital needs. Allison is an active member of AIA New York and served as the 2023-2024 President of NYCOBA NOMA, the New York Coalition of Black Architects and New York Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects. 

Joy Sinderbrand manages the New York City Housing Authority’s Capital Programs under the Asset & Capital Management Division. Capital Programs is delivering historic levels of investment to public housing residents by incorporating innovative building materials, construction methods, and technology. Leveraging in-house experience with industry best practices, the new vertical is responsible for project delivery that has increased five-fold in the past few years. Previously, Joy was the Vice President of the Recovery and Resilience Department, which was developed to invest $3.2 billion in repairing lasting damage from Superstorm Sandy and investing in precedent-setting resilience elements protecting structure and infrastructure at 35 developments housing over 60,000 low-income New Yorkers. 

Her background in major capital projects includes Port Authority of New York and New Jersey efforts to increase capacity at New York’s Penn Station and redevelopment of the World Trade Center. Previously, she worked for Washington Square Partners developing public-private partnerships and for the City of New York at the Department of Transportation and the Office of Management and Budget. She holds a joint master’s degree in public affairs and urban and regional planning from Princeton University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland Honors College. 

About the Civic Leadership Program
The AIANY Civic Leadership Program (CLP) is a six-month mentorship and training program designed to develop design professionals into civic leaders. Eight selected participants will gain hands-on experience engaging with municipal agencies, community organizations, and local stakeholders through development sessions and a public event. The program fosters skills in communication, public speaking, community outreach, and consensus building, empowering participants to navigate and influence the civic process effectively.