David Vatz
@davidvatz.bsky.social
Housing Advocate @prohousingpgh.org. YIMBY. Urbanist. World Traveler.
Governor @governor.ca.gov needs to sign SB79 to help save our democracy! Blue states refusal to build housing is killing our country and ceding our future. Gov Newsom can help stop this by signing SB79.
September 30, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Governor @governor.ca.gov needs to sign SB79 to help save our democracy! Blue states refusal to build housing is killing our country and ceding our future. Gov Newsom can help stop this by signing SB79.
Reposted by David Vatz
this week in WHO SAID IT: LEFT-NIMBY OR RIGHT-SEGREGATIONIST
May 13, 2025 at 3:44 PM
this week in WHO SAID IT: LEFT-NIMBY OR RIGHT-SEGREGATIONIST
This is what effective advocacy looks like. Very proud of the work @prohousingpgh.org did on this, and thankful for our dedicated city councilors for passing this unanimously!
Kudos to @prohousingpgh.org and their successful advocacy that’s led to Pittsburgh’s eliminating minimum lot sizes per units and eliminating and/or reducing minimum lot sizes citywide!
youtu.be/a80zoANs6JY?...
youtu.be/a80zoANs6JY?...
Pro-Housing Pittsburgh Members Support Min Lot Size Reform
YouTube video by Pro-Housing Pittsburgh
youtu.be
May 6, 2025 at 6:15 PM
This is what effective advocacy looks like. Very proud of the work @prohousingpgh.org did on this, and thankful for our dedicated city councilors for passing this unanimously!
Reposted by David Vatz
Oh, the author is an absolute garbage person who smears colleagues in public and has cost a local landmark literal millions of dollars in funding bc he torpedoed its chance at historic tax credits in a fit of pique.
He writes for CP bc nobody w/ more credibility will have him.
He writes for CP bc nobody w/ more credibility will have him.
April 9, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Oh, the author is an absolute garbage person who smears colleagues in public and has cost a local landmark literal millions of dollars in funding bc he torpedoed its chance at historic tax credits in a fit of pique.
He writes for CP bc nobody w/ more credibility will have him.
He writes for CP bc nobody w/ more credibility will have him.
Reposted by David Vatz
Neon Liberalism #22: Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump. www.liberalcurrents.com/neonliberali...
Neon Liberalism #22: We CAN Fix Housing
Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump....
www.liberalcurrents.com
April 7, 2025 at 4:53 AM
Neon Liberalism #22: Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump. www.liberalcurrents.com/neonliberali...
Reposted by David Vatz
really good to talk to @davidvatz.bsky.social here. right now the economy is in terrifying shape, and it can feel like we're powerless to do anything about it. but the deepest structural economic problem in america is *housing*--and we libs have a LOT we can do about that.
Neon Liberalism #22: Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump. www.liberalcurrents.com/neonliberali...
Neon Liberalism #22: We CAN Fix Housing
Samantha and guest David Vatz, founder of Pro-Housing Pittsburgh, discuss the meaning of the housing crisis, the death of the "asset economy," and what we liberals can do to fix housing despite Trump....
www.liberalcurrents.com
April 7, 2025 at 10:41 AM
really good to talk to @davidvatz.bsky.social here. right now the economy is in terrifying shape, and it can feel like we're powerless to do anything about it. but the deepest structural economic problem in america is *housing*--and we libs have a LOT we can do about that.
Reposted by David Vatz
Everyone deserves a safe, stable home. My plan tackles the housing crisis with real solutions. Swipe to see how we’ll make housing more affordable and abundant! #PolicyInAction
March 14, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Everyone deserves a safe, stable home. My plan tackles the housing crisis with real solutions. Swipe to see how we’ll make housing more affordable and abundant! #PolicyInAction
Reposted by David Vatz
Minimum lot sizes are about as close to an economic segregation tool as exists in the current zoning framework, and therefore is essentially a racial segregation tool. Minimum lot sizes are racist, get rid of em.
March 14, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Minimum lot sizes are about as close to an economic segregation tool as exists in the current zoning framework, and therefore is essentially a racial segregation tool. Minimum lot sizes are racist, get rid of em.
I'm really proud of the work that we've been doing at @prohousingpgh.org to understand how IZ is affecting housing production and affordability (spoiler: it crushes housing production and likely harms affordability). Today, we published an update to our December report, with important new analysis.
Pittsburgh's IZ mandate in Lawrenceville has reduced housing production by 30% since 2019. Today, we publish our updated study (link in 🧵) analyzing Pittsburgh's IZ policy, including new analysis of proposed buildings, and displacement of Black residents.
January 27, 2025 at 1:47 PM
I'm really proud of the work that we've been doing at @prohousingpgh.org to understand how IZ is affecting housing production and affordability (spoiler: it crushes housing production and likely harms affordability). Today, we published an update to our December report, with important new analysis.
Our mayor wants to pass citywide IZ, which will massively impact employment for our tradespeople. We're already doing worse on pandemic recovery than any similar metro, and Gainey wants it to get worse. We're losing to Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland.
January 18, 2025 at 12:55 AM
Our mayor wants to pass citywide IZ, which will massively impact employment for our tradespeople. We're already doing worse on pandemic recovery than any similar metro, and Gainey wants it to get worse. We're losing to Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland.
Austin, TX has somehow managed to see 7% year over year rent drops. And they did all of this without IZ mandates, and somehow convinced RealPage to not raise their rents! Anyone know what their secret is?
January 5, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Austin, TX has somehow managed to see 7% year over year rent drops. And they did all of this without IZ mandates, and somehow convinced RealPage to not raise their rents! Anyone know what their secret is?
Reposted by David Vatz
The problem with community outreach, is that 15 people who hate the project will show up in a city/neighborhood of 10,000, leave with the sincere belief that they "speak for the community," and be surprised when the project moves forward nonetheless.
I don’t disagree! Given that people who love cars are using these meetings to verbally abuse staff - maybe we should just not have them anymore. www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/arti...
December 28, 2024 at 4:06 PM
The problem with community outreach, is that 15 people who hate the project will show up in a city/neighborhood of 10,000, leave with the sincere belief that they "speak for the community," and be surprised when the project moves forward nonetheless.
It's wild to me that this administration hates people from outside of the city so much that they now accuse them of causing the housing crisis here. I would love to have a mayor who actively encourages folks to move to our great city.
December 27, 2024 at 9:37 PM
It's wild to me that this administration hates people from outside of the city so much that they now accuse them of causing the housing crisis here. I would love to have a mayor who actively encourages folks to move to our great city.
This is a great way of thinking about effective housing advocacy.
The way that normal people engagement with an issue like housing affordability is:
1) Does it affect me?
2) Does it affect someone I love?
3) Does it affect someone who serves me?
4) Does it affect someone like me?
You have to get them to "yes" on one or more of these questions or they won't care.
1) Does it affect me?
2) Does it affect someone I love?
3) Does it affect someone who serves me?
4) Does it affect someone like me?
You have to get them to "yes" on one or more of these questions or they won't care.
December 24, 2024 at 3:07 AM
This is a great way of thinking about effective housing advocacy.
Originally a 30-townhome development, now planned as a 19-townhome development in Polish Hill (downsized to avoid IZ). Now the neighborhood is trying to kill it all together with a bad-faith historic designation for this building. Link in 🧵
December 17, 2024 at 4:07 PM
Originally a 30-townhome development, now planned as a 19-townhome development in Polish Hill (downsized to avoid IZ). Now the neighborhood is trying to kill it all together with a bad-faith historic designation for this building. Link in 🧵
Wow, this is incredible and something every state should adopt.
With this provision of SB382, North Carolina closes a legislature-sized loophole in its anti-downzoning ordinance with a single stroke of the pen, handing property owners an override-proof veto against local actions that diminish property rights. H/t to Mark Zimmerman on X.
December 13, 2024 at 3:52 PM
Wow, this is incredible and something every state should adopt.
Build more, prices go down - Atlanta edition
December 12, 2024 at 7:00 PM
Build more, prices go down - Atlanta edition
Absolutely shameful that our Planning Commissioners somehow think that a 90-ft building next to the best transit infrastructure in our county is "egregiously tall." What in the world are we doing here?
90 feet tall is not egregiously tall next to a rapid bus line. I could not disagree with the commissioner more.
bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/new…
bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/new…
December 11, 2024 at 3:07 PM
Absolutely shameful that our Planning Commissioners somehow think that a 90-ft building next to the best transit infrastructure in our county is "egregiously tall." What in the world are we doing here?
One of the most expensive markets in the country (San Jose) has reduced it's IZ from 15% to 5%. And yet, Mayor Gainey is still proposing 10% in Pittsburgh. IZ has really been so thoroughly discredited at this point, it's becoming laughable. (H/T @jake-wil.de)
December 10, 2024 at 4:06 AM
One of the most expensive markets in the country (San Jose) has reduced it's IZ from 15% to 5%. And yet, Mayor Gainey is still proposing 10% in Pittsburgh. IZ has really been so thoroughly discredited at this point, it's becoming laughable. (H/T @jake-wil.de)
It was great to join the Marty Griffin (KDKA News Radio) show this morning to talk about the @prohousingpgh.org IZ study, and why the Mayor's proposal to extend IZ citywide has the potential to harm housing production and increase costs across our city. Listen here: www.youtube.com/live/4FwBpzb...
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December 9, 2024 at 11:25 PM
It was great to join the Marty Griffin (KDKA News Radio) show this morning to talk about the @prohousingpgh.org IZ study, and why the Mayor's proposal to extend IZ citywide has the potential to harm housing production and increase costs across our city. Listen here: www.youtube.com/live/4FwBpzb...
Reposted by David Vatz
Inclusionary zoning—the practice of requiring developers to rent new apartments at a loss to low-income tenants—is bad policy that exacerbates the housing shortage, increases housing prices, and leaves most poor people worse off. We should stop doing it!
Pittsburgh's IZ mandate in Lawrenceville has reduced housing production by 32% since 2019. Extending IZ citywide in its current form will increase prices and harm affordability. Read our research on the topic here: prohousingpgh.org/pittsburgh-i...
December 7, 2024 at 6:09 PM
Inclusionary zoning—the practice of requiring developers to rent new apartments at a loss to low-income tenants—is bad policy that exacerbates the housing shortage, increases housing prices, and leaves most poor people worse off. We should stop doing it!
Reposted by David Vatz
Oh my. 10% at 50% AMI. If I got that right that is terrible. Assume construction of market rate multifamily came to a grinding halt.
December 7, 2024 at 9:16 PM
Oh my. 10% at 50% AMI. If I got that right that is terrible. Assume construction of market rate multifamily came to a grinding halt.
Reposted by David Vatz
Idk the construction market in Pitt but 10% at 80 - 100% AMI might be ok. 50% is - so bad. I was in Pittsburgh recently for the first time ever. It is beautiful. Loved the downtown.
December 7, 2024 at 10:54 PM
Idk the construction market in Pitt but 10% at 80 - 100% AMI might be ok. 50% is - so bad. I was in Pittsburgh recently for the first time ever. It is beautiful. Loved the downtown.
YIMBYs - let's build more housing to fix the housing shortage.
Anti-YIMBY leftist - but what if we just murdered developers instead?
Anti-YIMBY leftist - but what if we just murdered developers instead?
December 5, 2024 at 5:36 PM
YIMBYs - let's build more housing to fix the housing shortage.
Anti-YIMBY leftist - but what if we just murdered developers instead?
Anti-YIMBY leftist - but what if we just murdered developers instead?