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Learn Center

Welcome to our virtual resource library! We aim to share our tools, ideas and strategies for making communities more inclusive in an open-sourced, transparent and free-of-charge platform such as this. The Learn Center is a free resource– all that’s required is your name, email, and zip code to access. We invite you to use, share and reference all our work, but please credit us when you do. Contact us to suggest a new topic, explore an existing topic more deeply or explore co-creating content to advance disability-forward housing. 

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People sit in a line of wheelchairs. A person is seen holding an American Flag with the wheelchair symbol on it made out of stars

Working Together at the Intersection of Disability and Homelessness

Homelessness affects over half a million people annually in the United States and is rising. Therefore, it’s essential to include those who have experienced homelessness in accessible, affordable, inclusive housing. Moreover, recent data shows 45% of the US homeless population lives with disabilities. Addressing their housing needs means increasing resources for accessible, affordable, and inclusive…

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Three people are pictured sitting in armchairs, talking around a coffee table with floor plans on it.
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Why Field Building is Central to The Kelsey’s Approach

Field Building is an essential aspect of our approach at The Kelsey. Solving the current housing crisis will require input, cross-sector leadership and expertise from a wide array of relevant stakeholders. We recognize that this is far too big a problem for any organization to solve on its own. The goal is to show how our work does not happen without field building. If you are fuzzy about the details of field building, this piece is for you. This article will introduce and define the concepts of field building and collective impact, explain how they are central to our approach and end with ways to stay engaged with The Kelsey and our work.

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A black and white image of people with and without disabilities marching on a paved path near a tree and grass. One person holds an American flag with the stars in the shape of a wheelchair.
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Strategies to Build Safety into Publicly Funded Housing

LIHTC developments endeavor to provide safe and supportive environments for all residents, including those with support needs, through resident services, proactive safety measures, and adherence to federal fair housing guidelines. All residents, regardless of background, deserve a safe, affordable, inclusive home. By upholding fair housing principles, LIHTC developments contribute to diverse and inclusive communities, prioritizing resident safety and community diversity as fundamental commitments. Developers of LIHTC projects do not need to choose between LIHTC funding and resident safety - this article will show you how both can be achieved with proper planning.

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An Illustration of The Kelsey Ayer Station
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An Untapped Advocacy Opportunity: Increasing the Supply of Accessible Housing through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program

The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program is the nation’s primary vehicle for financing affordable housing. LIHTC, however, is failing to meet the growing demand for accessible housing. Through this program, each state develops their own housing priorities through a Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) – guidelines that help state housing agencies determine how they allocate tax credits across their affordable housing infrastructure. The Kelsey’s research reveals that accessibility is not considered a priority for 19 states, and only 22 states require developers to construct any accessible units. Advocates can help influence QAPs by submitting public comments to housing finance agencies and educating policymakers on the importance of requiring accessible design in all LIHTC properties.

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The lobby of a building with people of different races painted on the wall. Stairs with multicolored posts are visible. People are seen milling about the lobby.
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How Cross-Disability Design Makes Housing Better for Everyone

Affordable housing developers must surmount an array of hurdles to bring their projects to fruition, including land use politics, funding shortfalls, rising construction costs, and layers of funding requirements. The call to also make affordable housing accessible and inclusive to people with disabilities strikes some as one leap too many. But contrary to assumptions, building with disability-forward design principles in mind makes developments more appealing to a broader range of residents, extends the usefulness of a space, and can attract new funding partners and supporters.

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Case Study: The Kelsey Ayer Station

The Kelsey Ayer Station in San Jose is the first project of its kind developed and The Kelsey’s inaugural housing development. We’re committed to open-sourcing every detail of this project from financing details, key steps, to things we would have approached differently. This article outlines the timeline, funding, partnerships, and key learnings from the development process to guide others undertaking similar work.

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What HCBS Means for Housers

Whether a developer has an existing affordable housing project or is conceptualizing their next, designing a resident-centered experience that considers the whole person is becoming increasingly important. At The Kelsey, we believe developers excel at this by: Supplementing their designs with disability-forward practices; Infusing the resident experience with inclusive services; and Consistently creating partnerships with each person who walks through the front door. To further these goals, this article demonstrates how developers and affordable housing operators can better understand Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), which undoubtedly cultivates a well-rounded, supportive, and affirmative experience for every resident in the place they call home.

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Happy group shot with 12 people in 2 rows with brightly colored t-shirts including green, red and purple. Man in a power wheelchair is central.
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Main Street Resident Experience

The Kelsey convenes the “Inclusive Houser Network,” an industry group of organizations developing or operating inclusive housing throughout the United States. This group currently includes sixteen organizations, one of which is Main Street, based in Rockville, Maryland. Main Street had been a longtime partner and collaborator with The Kelsey, including co-hosting the Building Inclusivity convening in 2021. Main Street opened their doors in August of 2020. In addition to their beautiful, bright and modern apartments, they launched a membership-based community in their vibrant 10,000 sq. ft. community space at the base of the building, open to those with and without disabilities, including residents and non-residents who join as members. Main Street offers up to 20+ weekly virtual and in-person programs delivered by a diverse array of community partners and centered around culture, movement, wellness, art, food and social opportunities. Programs are for everyone (residents and community members) to come as they are and choose how they participate, learn and connect. This guest author piece from Jillian Copeland, Main Street Founder, shares what meaningful programming looks like, lessons learned from resident experiences and how to support community-driven input and leadership.

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Four people sit together and talk. One of them is in a wheelchair. They all have notepads on their laps.
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Increasing Disabled Leadership in Housing

As many as 1 in 4 people live with disabilities in the US and the population only continues to grow. Increasing disabled leadership will better ensure the field meets the housing needs of the over 61 million people with disabilities. This article serves as a resource for housing organizations that want to increase the participation and leadership of people with disabilities within their work, as well as a resource for leaders with disabilities who seek to engage in the housing field.

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People with Disabilities Living in the US Face Urgent Barriers to Housing

Disabled people living in households across the United States are experiencing disproportionate rates of housing insecurity due to a unique set of barriers and federal assistance programs are failing to meet their needs. The Kelsey and Urban Institute are proud to release this national needs assessment that quantifies the number of disabled people impacted by barriers of housing affordability, accessibility, and service-enriched, quality community-based housing. From the 2021 Current Population Survey, the research explores the current characteristics and living situations of housed disabled people, as well as their ability to access federal housing assistance and other support programs.

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A young man and a woman sit with big smiles in an outdoor space with beautiful greenery behind them. One woman is African American, dressed in all black. The other young woman is Asian with a white top and grey pants. See less
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Inclusion Concierge: Top Considerations for Resident Services for Disability Inclusive Communities

Building a strong support and services delivery system within affordable and mixed income housing communities fosters inclusion and improves housing retention for both disabled and non-disabled residents, but the process can be challenging to conceptualize and fund. Reviewing key elements of The Kelsey’s approach to solving this problem through the Inclusion Concierge model can help you navigate the creation of your own supportive, inclusive housing community.

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The Interior of the courtyard of The Kelsey Civic Center. Trees are visible in the courtyard. People can be seen sitting, standing and walking.
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Beyond Code: Taking a Progressive Approach to Disability Accessibility & Inclusion

One in four Americans lives with a disability, yet it’s estimated that less than 6% of the national housing supply is designed to be accessible. As housing communities are created, they don’t often meet the diverse accessibility and inclusion needs of people with disabilities. While basic code and compliance measures require specific features, no holistic set of guidelines and standards define an implementable, progressive approach to design truly accessible and inclusive housing communities. Equipping designers, builders, and developers with a set of standards and a new framework for disability-forward design, that highlights accessibility and inclusion, can drastically improve housing quality and housing options for all people.

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How to Choose a Development Partner

As a part of our Getting Started Guide, this article is intended for people and organizations who would like to build disability-forward housing but need a partner to successfully execute their project idea. In this article, we provide context and common language used in the field to build your understanding so you can choose an appropriate development partner that will help you execute a housing community you envision.

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An image of people with and without disabilities, some standing and some in wheelchairs, putting large and colorful building blocks together.
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How to Host Inclusive Community Workshops

This overview walks you step-by-step through hosting your own inclusive community workshops for your housing project. It covers the type of workshops, who and how to invite participants, and accessibility of process and materials with tips and best practices throughout. This resource will give you practical insight into anchoring community workshops in inclusion and helping participants feel comfortable, welcomed and valued.

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A laptop, papers, a magazine titled ”Bay Area Parent" with a small child on the cover, and folders atop a work space.’
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Getting Started Guide: The First 5 Things to do to Develop Inclusive Housing

This article is a great resource for disability-forward minded individuals and organizations who own a piece of land and seek to develop inclusive housing. Specifically, this piece details the first five necessary steps to becoming an inclusive houser. Disability-forward housing is anchored in inclusion and seeks to put the lived experiences of people with disabilities top of mind. By the end of this article, you will know and better understand the five steps required to get started in developing a piece of land into an inclusive housing community.

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Development and Finance Basics

A beginners’ crash course in Housing Financing, both generally and specific to affordable housing. You will learn valuable terms, funding timelines and phases of development, and who you need on your team. Whether you are a beginner just fantasizing about developing disability-forward housing or in the early stages of creating an inclusive housing community, this article defines key terms to know and processes to address.

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This is an image of the Element Detail sheet for the Design Standards. It shows a sheet diagram showing a design elements and it's explanation through graphics, description, and sources. The left column shows a categorization based on Impact Areas and Additional Benefits. The top right shows the element score and whether it is Essential.
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Inclusive Design Standards

26% of people have a disability, yet it’s estimated that less than 6% of the national housing supply is designed to be accessible. The Housing Design Standards for Accessibility and Inclusion consist of over 300 Elements, which reflect design operations and choices that include development strategies, building features, or operational policies that support accessibility and inclusion. The Design Standards organize elements by Design Categories, Impact Areas, and Additional Benefits. Click to download the standards and a self-certification tool.

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Housing is Policy

This piece comes from a series of articles from the Raise the Roof training program for leaders with disabilities who want to learn how housing gets built. This article covers some of the basics of housing policy, including defining housing production, preservation and protection. It also discusses zoning and fair housing. This is a great primer for any advocate who is new to housing policy.

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image of Caroline and Erick facing each other while erick is using his pen on plans
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Housing Access and Design

A home's level of accessibility affects each person’s ability to live healthy, meaningful lives. As disability-forward housing advocates, it is important to understand how housing is designed and how it is made accessible. Key topics include: how housing is designed, Building Codes, building codes and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Universal Design, and Human-centered design.

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The Three P’s of Housing Affordability

The housing affordability crisis continues to impact communities across the country and it is our job, as disability housing advocates, to stay informed, engaged and ready to spring into action when needed. There are key terms used in the housing industry that are essential for any disability advocate to learn and understand. Read about these terms, their meaning in housing and why this content is mandatory for anyone fighting for disability-forward housing.

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Illustrations showcasing different models of housing: Segregated, Integrated and Inclusive

Moving from Integration to Inclusion

Conversations around disability-inclusive housing often center on discussions of physical housing types and supports and services. While these elements are fundamental, The Kelsey believes that these two elements are should be considered as necessary to support a crucial third element: community life. Read on to learn more about The Kelsey’s triangle graphic and its application to thriving inclusive communities.

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Disability & Housing

People with disabilities include/are diverse and so are their housing needs. Housing considerations for people with disabilities can be categorized into three areas: affordability, accessibility and inclusivity. Learn about these central pillars, what they mean and why they are foundational in understanding The Kelsey’s work.

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A white question mark is painted on a brick wall. A sign near the bottom of the wall says "Smith Street."

So, what’s the problem?

We know there’s a shortage of housing options for people with disabilities. Not being satisfied with the typical answer of “we just need more housing” led us on a journey to know more. This piece chronicles the convening of three relevant stakeholder teams creating and scoping a problem definition and then evaluating and ranking six existing housing models. The Together We Can Do More process mirrors this one in many ways, including intense problem defining, cross sector stakeholder engagement and proposed solutions. The insights and lessons learned here continue to inform our work to this day.

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Triangle of Community Living: Community, Housing, and Supports & Services
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The Triangle of Community Living

Conversations around disability-inclusive housing often center on discussions of physical housing types and supports and services. While these elements are fundamental, The Kelsey believes that these two elements are should be considered as necessary to support a crucial third element: community life. Read on to learn more about The Kelsey’s triangle graphic and its application to thriving inclusive communities.

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The Oakland Bay Bridge looking on to San Francisco

Together We Can Do More

The Kelsey embarked on a nine-month organizing and predevelopment process called Together We Can Do More that focused on a clear lack of funding, strategies, and operating models to address the housing needs of adults with disabilities around the Bay Area. Cross-sector stakeholders participated in a three-part workshop series that defined the problems driving disability housing shortages, identified interventions, and designed what new solutions could and should look like in the Bay Area and beyond. The Together We Can Do More process is one that can be implemented in your own community.

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How Might We…?

So often disability housing models start with iterations on existing structures. We start with broken systems or outdated models and work to adjust, modify, or rebuild them. But, what if we designed for what we actually wanted to do? What if we created something based on our vision for the future not our frustrations from the past? We’re working with our partners to do just that. We think it starts with giving the right questions to smart people.

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Defining Inclusive Communities

The Kelsey defines inclusive housing as housing with residents who are a mix of people with and without disabilities. But why does inclusion matter? How does it specifically benefit the community? The management and building staff will serve all residents, with and without disabilities. In inclusive housing, these efforts foster interaction, understanding, and connection across people with and without disabilities, and of all backgrounds.

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Disability Housing: What’s happening? What’s challenging? What’s needed?

For adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities, a suitable home is sometimes almost impossible to come by. Hundreds of thousands of adults with disabilities across the U.S. sit on housing “wait lists” for home and community-based services. Even if they’re ready to make the move out of their parents’ home into the community or independent living, the housing options and funding supports often don’t exist.

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