Toward healthier affordable housing: Innovations in environmental design policy and practice
Momen Heravi, Ali
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/117671
Description
Title
Toward healthier affordable housing: Innovations in environmental design policy and practice
Author(s)
Momen Heravi, Ali
Issue Date
2022-12-02
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
Dearborn, Lynne M.
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Dearborn, Lynne M.
Committee Member(s)
Schwingel, Andiara
Greenlee, Andrew J.
Bollo, Christina
Department of Study
Architecture
Discipline
Architecture
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Affordable Housing
Housing Policy
Mental Health
Low-income Housing Tax Credit
Healthy Housing
Housing Quality
Psychological Well-being
Abstract
This dissertation addresses the intersection of two health-related crises disproportionately borne by the most vulnerable populations in the US today: housing and mental health. In the US, we have a severe and long-standing shortage of quality affordable housing and a mental health epidemic that severely burdens our economy. The architectural and operational characteristics of multifamily housing and the physical qualities of neighborhoods are two important pathways through which housing affects psychological wellbeing and mental health. In the context of ongoing national discussions about battling the mental health crisis among underserved populations, it is more important than ever to examine how innovations in housing policy, design, and construction can influence mental health by shaping the physical qualities of on-site common spaces and locational features of the nation’s affordable rental housing, nearly 90% of which is funded through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. My work addresses the question, to what extent do state-level affordable housing policy innovations that prioritize building and neighborhood quality provisions support mental wellbeing of residents? I answer this question through analyses of 50 states’ LIHTC Qualified Allocation Plans (QAPs), the policy document detailing each state’s housing quality priorities and directing LIHTC funding awards. Related in-depth qualitative interviews with developers of four LIHTC-financed projects enable me to critically appraise the role and potential contribution of QAPs in locating and shaping affordable housing stock protective of residents’ mental health. This dissertation study offers a fresh perspective regarding the challenges and potential opportunities in bridging the existing gaps between research, policy, and practice in the creation of affordable housing stock that is supportive of psychological wellbeing.
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