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Note: I just saw an advance of the presentation. Seriously, don't miss it! The Pascua Yaqui Tribe is pioneering a much-needed change in our approach to affordable housing.

"Creativity in Development and Why It Is Important for Sustainability," with Keith Gregory.

“By pushing the envelope, we hope to set a new standard for affordable housing across the country," says Keith Gregory, director of housing for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, who will introduce Climate Tucson to Itom Pocho’Oria Kari’m (Our Desert Homes), a new neighborhood that combines sustainability, social equity and out-of-the-box thinking to create a showcase low- and moderate-income housing project for tribal members.

Incorporating ultra-modern design and green construction standards with xeriscaping and solar panel capabilities, Pohco’oria Kari’m is raising the bar nationally. “This style isn’t really seen anywhere else in affordable housing across the U.S. — in both Native and traditional affordable housing projects,” Gregory said in mid-August, when the $19.5 million in state funding for the project was announced. “By pushing the envelope, we hope to set a new standard for affordable housing across the country.”

The homes will be built on a 40-acre parcel within the Pascua Yaqui Reservation south of Tucson near Valencia and Mission roads. Construction is set to begin next year. The money received through the state’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program is the largest amount ever funded to the tribe.

Gregory will talk to us about the inspiration and the goals for the project, which is the first phase of a three-phase mixed-use development.

Gregory joined the tribal office in December 2019. He has spent the past 15 years in the public housing sector and has worked with progressive housing authorities in Pittsburgh, Chicago, Atlanta and, most recently, with the City of Tucson Housing and Community Development Department.

Q&A will follow the presentation.

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