January 21, 2021  Using the ADU law for Infill Community-building   6pm

A Neighborhood Strategy Workshop
Design your Neighborhood's character

Use the ADU law and upcoming local housing policy to add more diverse skills to your street. Make your neighborhood more resilient and rich!

This Neighborhood organization wanted to learn to use ADUs,  collaborative living strategies and other upcoming laws to brainstorm ways to create more affordable housing and open their streets to more residents with varied skills and talents.

• ADU /JADU Law
• Co-living opportunities
• Local East Bay ordinances.
• The Design/Build process.
• Upcoming bills that may change the landscape.
• City strategies and next steps.

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Sign up HERE to request a group strategy consultation and training.

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November 9, 2019 ADU Basics Workshop    1:30-4pm with possible morning TOUR

 Thinking about building an Accessory Dwelling? 
ADU Task Force of East Bay and the City of Oakland are hosting an informative. workshop bout basics with a tour of finished and in-progress ADUs in the morning. Come learn how to make one happen for your family.  Ask your questions about:

• new State Law changes for 2020
• Oakland's ADU ordinance,
• how to get permits,
• the design and construction realities,
• financing options,
• being a landlord,
• how the new Green Code impacts on your timeline and costs

You ask, we'll answer!
Over the last three years, the ADU Task Force has presented several educational forums about the ADU State law and how East Bay cities have made it possible for many homeowners to build these efficient intimate dwellings that empower families to live well.
Come join us for a workshop that will focused on your questions! Space is limited so sign up today to be sure you get a handout.

There is a free event but you must register and we have limited seating : Eventbrite coming soon!

 FAQs
 1. How can I contact the organizer with any questions?   contact loni at  loni@lonigray.com
 2. Is this workshop Accessible?
Yes, the Dimond Library has an elevator to the second floor meeting room where this event is being held.
Welcome all.

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Events

August 17, 2019 On our Own Terms!
Using ADUs and Collaborative living Strategies to own and live well.

 Register here: eventbrite.com/e/on-our-own-terms-using-adus-and-collaborative-living-strategies-to-own-and-live-well-tickets-68047458781

This workshop has a wider vision than just ADU basics.
Yes, ADU State and local laws and what they empower you to do will be covered.

But if you think about it, you're creating an intimate community, so why not bring that into the discussion to see what other choices you might make?
How might these help you live better, or create a path to  ownership?

We'll have an expert to also discuss being a landlord, and the laws surrounding that.

Plus, I'm trying to assemble a small self-guided TOUR of ADUs and collaborative living examples for right after the workshop.

Come!
Learn and be inspired by what folks in East Bay are doing to improve their own lives, on their own terms!

Workshop and tour are free, but seating is limited to just over 60, so register and save your spot.
And spread the word to others who might be interested!
See you there,
Loni
Also, sign up here to keep updated about events in future.

March 9, 2019   How to build an Accessory Dwelling in Oakland- Basics ADU Workshop

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/adu-basics-building-an-accessory-dwelling-in-oakland-tickets-56263821605

Thinking about building an ADU, an Accessory Dwelling Unit on your property? 
Loni Gray, and the City of Oakland are hosting an informative and interactive session with several experts from the ADU Task Force and the Oakland/Berkeley Board of Realtors. Come learn how to make one happen for your family.
Ask your questions about:

• Oakland's ADU ordinance,
• how to get permits,
• the design and construction realities,
• financing options,
• being a landlord,
• and how the latest Oakland ballot measures might impact your choices. 

You ask, we'll answer!
Over the last two years, the ADU Task Force has presented several educational forums about the new State law and how Berkeley and Oakland have made it possible for many homeowners to build these effiicent intimate dwellings that empower families to live well.
Come join us for a workshop that will focused on your questions! Space is limited so sign up today to be sure you get a handout.
 FAQs
1. What are my transportation/parking options for getting to and from the event?
Parking in the Rockridge neighborhood is always tight. Get a drop-off or carpool if possible. There's a small library metered lot that fills up quickly.
 2, How can I contact the organizer with any questions?
contact - loni@lonigray.com
 3. Is this workshop Accessible?
Yes, the Library has elevators to the second floor meeting room where this event is being held.
Welcome all.

ADU Salons         
Come join Loni, members of the ADU Task Force, and other experts at our educational home-based Salons and workshops around the East Bay. When possible we pair up the event with a new ADU Open House.  There's nothing like walking through one to get the feel for what works and what doesn't in small home design!
Learn to create an ADU for yourself and your family

Learn about the State ADU Law, its updates as they happen, and what you're empowered to do.

• Learn the nuts and bolts and best practices of creating another small dwelling on your property.
• Meet the Small Home Specialists who make these dwellings and communities happen.

You can make it happen for your family. Sign up  below to learn about upcoming sessions.

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Below are some of the workshops the Task Force and I have given. If you have a group that needs to hear about intimate infill housing, and community building, write to me. Loni

January 25, 2018   Accessory Dwellings: creating the housing and neighborhoods we need

Almost 200 attendees met with Mayor Jesse Arreguin, Berkeley City Planning, and the Task Force at Longfellow High School Auditorium. Handouts complimented the presentations and  then we had 75 minutes of Q&A, including question to the Mayor, City Planning and the ADU Task Force:
~ Deb Sanderson - policy & rent control
~ Dianne Crosby,  - financing
~ Kevin Casey - permitting & building process
~ Loni Gray - design & remodeling taxation
Our Small Home Building Specialists were there to answer specific questions.

November 14, 2017 Designing What We Need to Live Well: Accessory Dwellings & Small Communities

28 professional architects and designers from the Organization of Women Architects (OWA) gathered at the Rockridge Library  in Oakland with Loni Gray who explained the components of the State' ADU law and led a discussion about its potential to do meaningful design work. How do we use design in the service of helping communities with housing? Loni invited members to decorate the room with ADU projects who gave wonderful "show n tells." 
~ Loni Gray, speaker, ALL THINGS HOUSING, ADU Task Force

August 26 2017  Backyard Cottages and In-Laws: creating housing for ourselves! 

 67 homeowners and policy makers met with Host Dianne Crosby of Guaranteed Rate Mortgage at the East Bay Media Center, 1939 Addison in Berkley to learn about the ADU law's details. The Panel presented finance, building process, plus Q&A
Kevin Casey, Loni Gray, Dianne Crosby, presented.

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July  19, 2017 Upzone Rockridge: Adding Dwellings to create the housing we need
SPUR Oakland: 1544 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94612

Lively discussion and Q&A about how policy has fostered housing discrimination, and the ways that already-established neighborhoods can do their part to address the housing shortage and combat displacement, including building more housing near transit and encouraging secondary units. A new campaign to create more housing for the “missing middle” is underway in Rockridge. Panelists:
~ Justin Horner / East Bay Forward
~ Robert Gammon / Oakland Magazine
~ Loni Gray / All Things Housing & ADU Task Force

May 19, 2017 Affordable Housing WeekAccessory Dwellings, creating what we need for ourselves!

59 Guests attended our Affordable Housing Week presentation at the East Bay Media Center, 1939 Addison in Berkeley, to consider how to use the advantages of the new State backyard cottage law to help their families afford to stay in the area.
~ Loni Gray,  the law and types of ADU design.
~ Kevin Casey, permits & building;
~ Dianne Crosby, financing
~ Deb Sanderson, local ADU policy in Berkeley

April 29, 2017 Accessory Dwellings, creating what we need for ourselves!

84 Guests attended Pinnacle Mortgage's ADU presentation at the East Bay Media Center, in Berkeley, to consider how to use the new law to advantage,.
~ Loni Gray,  the law and types of ADU design.
~ Kevin Casey, permits & building;
~ Tim Floyd, 203 K and other financing

March 17, 2016  Moving People toward Opportunity: Density, Diversity & Resilience

SPUR Policy Think Tank, Community Planning Policy Director Manager Kristy Wang invited Loni to join her and others on a panel about innovative housing at SPUR, San Jose.
"The conversation around accessory dwelling units, co-housing, shared housing and other innovative residential design is starting to heat up as interest in finding naturally affordable housing solutions that don’t require public subsidy continues to grow. Join us for a conversation on creative ways to incrementally increase the density and housing diversity of our communities."
See my presentation here: www.slideshare.net/LoniGray/collaborative-living-moving-people-towards-opportunity
~ Loni Gray, ZO Dwelling, designing for collaborative living.
~ Karen Parolek, Opticos, TheMissing Middle housing;
~ Pilar Lorenzana-Campo, SV @Home,  affordable housing programs

November 15, 2016  Building a Path to Ownership: Collaborative living & Accessory Dwellings

Vice-Mayor of the City of Albany, Peggy McQuaid, invited Loni to present on a panel about innovative housing to the public and the Albany Planning Department.
~ Loni Gray, designing for collaborative living, and the new ADU law.
~ Kevin Casey, New Avenue Homes, permits & building;
~ Rachel Ginis,  Lilypad homes, Junior ADUs

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May 17, 2016  Moving toward Opportunity & Well-being using Collaborative Living

Loni spoke during Affordable Housing Week, in Walnut Creek about the opportunity collaborative living gives small communities to buy in our expensive market and the importance of redesigning for privacy and communal living .

Oct 3, 2015  CA APA: Thinking Inside the Housing Box - Collaborative Living

Loni joined planning consultant and moderator Barry Miller to speak at the California American Planners Association conference about housing innovation. She focused on the opportunity collaborative living gives small groups to buy, even in our expensive market and the importance of redesigning for privacy and communal living.
~ Loni Gray, the advantages of well-designed collaborative housing over micro-units
~ Kate Black, City of Piedmont, successful secondary unit programs
~ Kate Comfort Harr, Hip Housing, home sharing
~ Kevin Casey,  New Avenue Homes, ADU's

Oct 14, 2014 Is Your Next Step Collaborative Living?

Loni  joined OpenDoor's Ben Provan and Jay Standish to speak about co-living. She told stories about how small groups used collaborative strategies to buy, keeping the high cost of living in check, plus the importance of redesigning for privacy and communal living .