Multi-Housing News - February 2009 - (Page 6)

Survival of the Fittest If you’re not thinking green, you’re probably out of step If you received a Circuit City gift card over the holidays you’d better use it fast. Circuit City is going out of business. So is the Hard Rock Amusement Park. And Starbucks is closing 600 of its stores. Expect to hear more bad news about familiar brands vanishing and downsizing before we emerge from this global recession. In Las Vegas, where unemployment is at a 23-year high, the new City Center mixeduse project is making headlines not only for its super-sized architecture, amenities, and construction budget, but also because it’s expected to contribute 12,000 new jobs to the community when it opens in December 2009. But while these jobs will definitely help the local economy, many more will be needed. Las Vegas business analysts predict City Center will receive approximately 100,000 job applications. Unemployment is already affecting vacancies and renewals in the apartment sector to varying degrees from market to market. How badly will the economic downturn impact mixed-use development, the movement away from suburban sprawl, and further revitalization efforts in our nation’s downtown areas? This month’s Executive Insight (page 8) touches on several topics including the symbiotic relationship between retail and multifamily development. Keat Foong, MHN executive editor, interviews the provocative Andres Duany, principal, Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company and a founder of the New Urbanism movement. “Without urbanism, apartment clusters surrounded by parking lots are waiting rooms for people who cannot afford houses,” says Duany. “Nearby shops for the ordinary daily needs and sociable eateries are essential—and they cost less and raise value more than the usual immensity of dopey landscaping and desiccated pool houses.” You might not agree with Duany (and if you don’t, please share your views in a Letter to the Editor), but who can argue with his stance on transit-oriented development, a key component of New Urbanism? “A transit stop within walking distance is going to become a checklist item for buyers and renters,” he predicts. However you define “green” in your personal or work lives, it’s hard to escape. In an informal survey of our online audience, MHN posed the question: Are you highlighting green features in your marketing materials? At press time, 65 percent of respondents replied “yes.” Certainly green will play a major role in President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus package, and many of the 400,000 new jobs to be created by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in the next six years reportedly will be in construction and involve the greening of existing infrastructure. In the housing category, even without retrofits, “apartments are by far the greenest by virtue of their construction,” says Jim Arbury, senior vice president of government affairs at the NMHC, which advocates for tax incentives to encourage more energy efficiency, but is against national mandates or “one size fits all” solutions. Arbury outlines NMHC’s Washington Outlook 2009 in this month’s Perspective (page 10). The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) thinks the new administration should help create millions of green-collar jobs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and deliver greener, more energy-efficient buildings. The USGBC is calling for the creation of a multibillion-dollar revolving loan fund, accessible to state and local governments, to support retrofitting and green building projects that create energy savings and a positive return on investment. The USGBC endorses utilizing a revolving fund mechanism whereby loans are repaid through energy and other savings from funded improvements. Such a measure could dramatically reduce future federal budget liability for green initiatives. What’s your green perspective? MULTI-HOUSING NEWS MHN GROUP PUBLISHER & SHOW DIRECTOR Daniel J. Corcoran daniel.corcoran@nielsen.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Natasha Selhi natasha.selhi@nielsen.com ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Associate Publisher: West, Mountain and Southern States Natasha Selhi natasha.selhi@nielsen.com Account Executive: Northeast and Midwest States Douglas Runner douglas.runner@nielsen.com 856-415-0301/fax: 856-415-0302 Director of Digital & Live Events: Jason J. Wafalosky Multi-Housing World/Multi-Housing News jason.wafalosky@nielsen.com 484-228-8481 CLASSIFIED & GALLERY ADS Account Executive: Fatima Ruiz fatima.ruiz@nielsen.com 646-654-5763/fax: 646-792-7108 MARKETING DIRECTOR Kevin Marty kevin.marty@nielsen.com 516-682-6149/fax: 516-682-6166 ONLINE PUBLICATIONS www.multi-housingnews.com MHN Daily Newsletter MHN Property Management MHN Green Building & Design MHN Finance & Investment EXHIBIT BOOTH SALES & SPONSORSHIPS Jason J. Wafalosky jason.wafalosky@nielsen.com 484-228-8481 Multi-Housing World Expo & Conference REPRINTS The YGS Group Mike Shober 800-290-5460 ext. 129 MHN@theYGSgroup.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR Keat Foong keat.foong@nielsen.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Diana Mosher diana.mosher@nielsen.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR Jonathan Marsland jonathan.marsland@nielsen.com ART DIRECTOR Michelle Matteson michelle.matteson@nielsen.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR Erika Schnitzer erika.schnitzer@nielsen.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Christopher Hosford Michael Russo ONLINE NEWS EDITOR Anuradha Kher anuradha.kher@nielsen.com MHN BLOG Jack Kern Daniel Gehman PRODUCTION MANAGER Jean Loesch jean.loesch@nielsen.com CIRCULATION Omeda nmhn@omeda.com 800-697-8859/fax: 847-291-4816 LIST RENTALS Nikki Miller 646-654-7261 nikki.miller@nielsen.com Diana Mosher Editor-in-Chief MHN ONLINE To view recent Letters to the Editor, visit www.multi-housingnews.com/letters. To share your comments with our readers, email Diana Mosher at diana.mosher@nielsen.com President: Greg Farrar • Senior VP, Human Resources: Michael Alicea • Senior VP, Marketing: Mark Hosbein • Senior VP, Finance: Derek Irwin • Senior VP, Entertainment: Gerry Byrne • Senior VP, Marketing, Media & Visual Arts: Sabrina Crow • Senior VP, Retail: David Loechner • Senior VP, Online: Linda McCutcheon • Senior VP, Building & Design: Joe Randall • Senior VP, Central Services: Mary Kay Sustek • VP, Licensing: Howard Appelbaum • VP, Manufacturing & Distribution: Jennifer Grego • VP, Audience Marketing: Joanne Wheatley 6 February 2009 | Multi-Housing News | Official Publication of Multi-Housing World http://www.multi-housingnews.com http://www.multi-housingnews.com/letters

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Multi-Housing News - February 2009

Multi-Housing News - February 2009
Contents
From the Editor
Executive Insight
Perspective
NMHC Washington Outlook
Market Forecast: Gulf Coast
Renovating in a Recession: New Rules
Development & Design: Make Way for Modular
Products: Security
Finance: Structured Financing
Directory: Multi-Housing Finance Providers
Technology: Utility Management

Multi-Housing News - February 2009