Financing equitable TOD in Denver, San Francisco, and the rest of the nation

Abstract

Equitable TOD is an integrated approach to community development that links affordable housing production and preservation strategies to regional transportation and economic development planning. This approach has strong potential to improve access to opportunities for low- and moderate-income families; however, the current community development finance system is ill-equipped to address the significant and complex financial needs of equitable TOD. In response to this challenge, two public-private funds have been established to make available new financial tools that help expand access to equitable TOD. Through a review of the literature and interviews with practitioners, funders, and researchers in the field of community development, this thesis explores how the $15M Denver TOD Fund and the $50M San Francisco Bay Area Transit-Oriented Affordable Housing Fund overcame the barriers to financing equitable TOD, and what their successes and challenges imply for the future of the national community development finance system. I argue that the funds have made an important physical impact on local communities, but their ability to meet the need for equitable TOD is severely constrained by their small scale. I find that the funds have had important effects on the broader community development finance system, and that these effects have extended the funds' impact beyond the scale of their direct investments. I identify four key effects: improved understanding of the need for equitable TOD; increased participation by key financial institutions; creation of new financial products; and improved alignment of public and private funding sources. Building on the funds' success and momentum, I recommend three policy changes to facilitate the development of equitable TOD at the national scale: first, the creation of a federal policy environment that encourages investment in equitable TOD through coordinated planning and targeted financial incentives; second, the devotion of significantly greater public resources for equitable TOD; and third, the enhancement of the capacity of CDFIs and other organizations to take advantage of new opportunities for equitable TOD.