Bloomberg Philanthropies Will Fund Homebuilding Reforms in 30 Cities

Michael Bloomberg's philanthropic organization is bringing funding to 30 cities in hopes of speeding homebuilding reforms.Bloomberg Philanthropies and nonprofit think tank Accelerator for America will lead a project to give hundreds of thousands of dollars to help cities improve their permitting and approval processes for new housing. The awards come as cities across the nation confront housing affordability challenges. The Realtor.com housing supply gap report shows the nationwide shortage of homes hit 4.03 million this year. Other groups like the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimate a shortage of 7.2 million affordable and available rental homes for very-low-income renters.In a statement, Accelerator for America said they build on ideas developed in three cities—Atlanta, Austin and San Diego—that were effective in improving their building process. The exact donation amount varies from city to city, but each will receive $450,000 to $750,000.Each of the winners will get help with one of three areas. Some will take aim at using new technology to speed along approvals. Others will work with architects to develop "permit-ready" plans. And others will field a "strike force" ...