Hiding in Plain Sight: How Reconsideration of Codes for Existing and Historic Buildings Can Expand Affordable Housing

Marilyn E. Kaplan
Fellow, Association for Preservation Technology International
Preservation Architecture

Mike Jackson
Fellow, American Institute of Architects
Fellow, Association for Preservation Technology International

Current policy conversations regarding the critical need to increase the availability of affordable housing rarely include discussions regarding the reuse of existing and historic buildings, including the thousands of vacant housing units on Main Streets across the United States. Recapturing these spaces has many advantages, including carbon-reduction, expanded use of existing infrastructure, and building or strengthening communities. Nearly 50 years ago, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) led many of the efforts to identify barriers to building reuse that were embedded in the building codes, resulting in the framework that is now the basis of the widely adopted model for existing building code(s). A half-century after these initial efforts, many factors have contributed to the reemergence of codes as a barrier to greater reuse of existing buildings. An updated assessment and strategy to address current code barriers can make an unparalleled contribution to meeting the nation’s current and projected housing needs.