Homelessness is a Housing Problem

March 22, 2023

This event has passed, but you can watch the recording above!

Join us for a video presentation from author Gregg Colburn on his thesis that homelessness is fundamentally a housing supply problem. In his view, individuals may become homeless due to unemployment, addiction, or other personal matters, but regional rates of homelessness are most strongly tied to housing availability.  And if we continue to diagnose homelessness as a problem of the individual, we will continue to undermine our efforts to reduce it.

Following the video, Dave Alden will lead a conversation with invited local housing experts and the audience on what the authors' message means to how we view local housing prospects.

Dave Alden has served as the de facto executive director of Petaluma Urban Chat since its founding, spearheading several Urban Chat initiatives while also working to bring in enough other people that Urban Chat will live on when he steps away into an urban retirement of downtown living, sidewalk dining, walking, and transit.

After 35 years as an engineering consultant, Dave consults as an Entitlement Coordinator for the occasional development project coming to town.