RAD Photo Essays and Case Studies

The following photo essay series documents the experience from the resident’s perspective. The purpose of RAD is to preserve and improve affordable housing so that residents can live in stable, healthy, and safe environments. This series is meant to highlight the real-life impact of RAD. After all, the success of RAD isn't measured in dollars but in people. We are excited to share how lives have been and will continue to be affected by RAD in a positive way. The most recent essay, "RAD in Rome, NY" can viewed below. Additional essays are available below. In addition to the Photo Essays, HUD produced numerous RAD case studies to help inform public housing and affordable housing providers as to the benefits of RAD. The case studies are available on this web page.

The renovation of Colonial II, an affordable residential tower on the edge of a scenic wetland in Rome, New York, created an opportunity for the Rome Housing Authority (RHA) to demonstrate the possibility of achieving the sustainability goal of net zero in a fifty-year-old building, repositioning the building toward the future while also improving the lives of residents today. View the essay for more details. (September 9 2024)

Additional Essays

 

		Originally built in 1952, Westview Village was the first public housing development in Ventura, California. By the mid-2010s the buildings had deteriorated and the floor plans didn’t match the needs of modern families. Seeking to meet the area’s demand for affordable housing, the Housing Authority of the City of San Buenaventura (HACSB) turned to RAD to redevelop the property in four phases and increase the density of affordable homes in the community from 180 to 320. This essay was also featured in a Special Edition of the RADBlast!: RAD Celebrates Earth Day. (April 22, 2024)
The Brenham Housing Authority turned to the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program and was able to finance rehabilitation, demolition, new construction, and temporary relocation of residents in order to transform its depleted housing into a beautiful and sustainable public resource for current and future generations. Read more... Published 11/9/2023	The Wicomico Housing Authority in Maryland used RAD to replace its single public housing development with multiple properties in and around the city of Salisbury, creating new integrated housing opportunities throughout Wicomico County. Read more... Published 9/7/2023	Using RAD, and an investment of over $30 million from debt, equity, and local funds, the McKinney Housing Authority (Texas) replaced 150 homes with new deeply affordable housing in a community that has experienced steady economic growth since 2012, including a 400% population increase. Read more... Published 6/5/2023
The Ypsilanti Housing Commission’s (YHC's) Deborah Strong Housing provides high-quality apartments and townhouses for low-income residents and built-in resources to break cycles of poverty. Read more... Published 2/9/2023	The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles used RAD and other tools to reinvest in this community to revitalize homes and the lives of those who live there. Read more... Published 5/31/2022	Fort Worth Housing Solution used RAD and the option to transfer assistance to replace the deep subsidy from Butler Place in new mixed-income communities across Fort Worth, deconcentrating poverty. Read more... Published 4/12/2022
The Holyoke Housing Authority redeveloped and revitalized their properties using a variety of HUD assistance opportunities, creating a community that can better serve the population. Read more... Published 6/9/2020	The Chicago Housing Authority leveraged two demonstrations, RAD and HUD's Moving to Work (MTW), to benefit its communities providing affordable housing opportunities for seniors, families, and mixed-income households. Read more... Published 11/20/2019	The New York City Housing Authority, the developers and the residents working together transformed Ocean Bay, the first public housing property in NYC renovated& through the RAD program,& from an apartment complex into a community. Read more... Published 8/19/2019
The Philadelphia Housing Authority transformed a former school building into new residential housing units for senior residents and veterans. Read more... Published 5/23/2019	The Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, Nashville’s one-stop shop for affordable housing, used RAD to transform Cayce Place into a mixed-income, mixed-use neighborhood. Read more... Published 2/6/2019	The Housing Authority of the City of El Paso (HACEP) used RAD as a reinvestment in this community to help each resident's rental unit feel more like a home. Read more... Published 2/6/2019
Participating in the RAD program allowed the New Bern Housing Authority, partnered with Evergreen Partners and TCG Development, to restore this historic housing complex to its original beauty with strong, lasting materials. Read more... Published 9/6/2018	Through RAD, this senior living community received improvements to their units and the building, including the transformation of some units with new accessibility features so that the tenants can live at the property while still maintaining their independence. Read more... Published 4/26/2018	Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) credits the success of this RAD conversion to the willingness to communicate and get residents involved in the process. Read more... Published 3/1/2018
Residents of this public housing property in San Francisco, CA, were glad to call it home as a result of the renovations made to this property under the RAD program. Read more... Published 1/18/2018	This property in Portland, ME evolved into a housing community for people living with disabilities and senior, received the renovation deserved by tenants through a RAD program. Read more... Published 12/11/2017	The Housing Authority of Baltimore City reinstilled trust to residents after using RAD to make major renovations and improvement to the property, creating an environment where residents are happy to call their place home. Read more... Published 9/21/2017

 

Case Studies

 

HUD produced numerous RAD case studies to help inform public housing and affordable housing providers as to the benefits of RAD. These case studies shine a spotlight on numerous types of RAD conversions that have closed successfully, and successfully preserved housing for low-income tenants. Here are the case studies published to date:

Winder, Georgia: The Winder Housing Authority Creates a One-Stop-Shop at the Wimberly Center for Community Development. (Published 7/2020) Private case study by Novogradac examining, HTCs and RAD Projects on a Smaller Scale, "The Case of Liberty Village and Liberty Square in Groesbeck, Texas". (Published 11/2018) Lavonia, GA leveraging RAD's increased income predictability and reduced regulatory burdens to positively impact the stability and operations of small PHAs. (Published 9/27/2016) Boulder, CO combining RAD, MTW, LIHTCs and Section 18 Demo-Dispositions to deliver high-impact housing and resident opportunity enhancements. (Published 4/21/2016) Ann Arbor, MI where a portfolio conversion improved the homes and lives of its residents. (Published 3/31/2016) Sharswood/Blumberg, PA used the RAD program to jump start their comprehensive Choice Neighborhoods Initiative (CNI) Planning Grant housing strategy. Long Beach, CA where RAD is used to serve veterans and seniors. (January 8, 2016) Macon-Bibb County, GA, pioneers of the RAD program. (December 3, 2015) Elgin, IL, where resident seniors and persons-with-disabilities are active in the cause. (November 10, 2015) Fresno, CA, where public housing facing substantial capital needs used RAD as a means to finance the rehabilitation of multiple developments. (Published 10/29/2015)

DeKalb, GA, where resident engagement was the key to the success of a large portfolio's conversion to RAD. (Published 10/29/2015) Lexington, KY, used innovating financing and residential engagement to successfully execute substantial rehabilitation.(Published 7/21/2015) Franklin, VA, who did a full RAD conversion of a small PHA portfolio.(Published 12/12/2014) Southern Nevada, where the PHA was able to convert to RAD on a tight deadline. (Published 12/12/2014) Montgomery County, MD showcased how to convert to RAD in a high-cost area. (Published 11/5/2014) Haverhill, MA used the second component of RAD to preserve housing created under Section 236. (Published 11/5/2014) Lexington, NC, financed substantial rehabilitation of its entire portfolio. (Published 11/5/2014) Ilion, NY, where a small PHA successfully leveraged private financing. (Published 11/5/2014) Cambridge, MA combined RAD with the Moving to Work program to preserve affordable housing. (Published 9/24/2014) Broward County, FL utilized effective resident engagement to proceed through the RAD process. (Published 9/24/2014)

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