The Latest
What Families Need to Know About Their School Rights During Temporary Relocation
When a housing rehabilitation project displaces your family, federal law protects your children's right to stay in their school — and guarantees a bus ride there, even across district lines. Imagine your home has been flagged as unsafe. A government-funded...
Lead Disclosure in NY Real Estate: What Agents Need to Know
One of the things I hear all the time from real estate agents is that lead “isn’t really a big deal anymore.” I understand where that comes from. The rules that apply during a transaction are relatively limited, and most deals move forward without any issue. But that...
SHPO Review and Section 106 Compliance in New York: What Program Administrators Need to Know
by Drew Alberti One of the most common questions I get from municipalities and nonprofit partners is whether they really have to deal with SHPO review if a building isn’t listed on the National Register. Someone will say, “It’s not historic,” or “It’s not on any...
EPA RRP vs. HUD Lead Rules: What Housing Program Administrators Need to Know
Housing program administrators frequently encounter confusion between EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) compliance and HUD’s lead-based paint requirements. While both apply to pre-1978 housing and often intersect on assisted rehabilitation projects, they are...
EPA Updates Lead Dust Standards: What You Need to Know in 2026
In January 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated its federal lead-based paint regulations, changing how lead dust is identified, reported, and cleared in pre-1978 housing. These updates affect lead inspections, risk assessments, and...
Community Cultural Development – Part 2 – Organizing and Visioning
The work of community cultural development lies in creating the conditions for which as many community members as possible, or are feasible for the project, can discover the potential within themselves and their community to be moved to gather and combine their...
Joan Leary Matthews blog on the Governor’s signing of the Lead Pipes Right to Know Act
Read Joan Leary Matthews's blog on the Governor’s signing of the Lead Pipes Right to Know Act. The Lead Pipe Right to Know Act is the first step toward replacing all of the lead service lines in the state....
Community Cultural Development – What is it? – Part 1
2022 Mural, City of Glens Falls, by Hannah Williams. Photo by Jon Crouch. You’ve probably noticed it when visiting a new place, especially in larger cities with distinctive neighborhoods. Think of New Orleans, for example. Even if you’ve never been there you’ve likely...
Former Wilmarth Building Site Under New Ownership
For Immediate Release (Greenwich, NY) Six months after a devastating fire reduced the historic Wilmarth Building to rubble, 126 Main Street in Greenwich, NY has new ownership. Flatley Read, Inc., a Community Development and Environmental Analysis Corporation based in...
We Have Opinions On: Real Estate Journalism
An article in the real estate section of Sunday, January 30th’s Albany Times Union takes a deep dive into the dilemma faced by many millennial college graduates who are unable to purchase a home due to the staggering level of student loan debt that they are carrying. ...