Tools for Increasing Housing Production in Your Community

Calling all planning and zoning board members, public officials, municipal staff, affordable housing developers, and housing advocates!

How can your community expand its housing opportunities and ensure affordability? Join CHAPA virtually on Wednesday, November 6th and November 13th from 3:00 PM to 4:45 PM for our Tools for Increasing Housing Production in Your Community Virtual Conference (formerly our annual Chapter 40B Conference).

We'll cover:

• the menu of tools for production and how they all work together
• new programs and policies passed in the Affordable Homes Act
• what’s in store for communities with our new state Office of Fair Housing
• current best practices and challenges in affirmative fair housing marketing
• how to use inclusionary zoning to address housing needs and incorporate affordability

Tickets are $75 for non-CHAPA members and $55 for CHAPA members and cover all three sessions. If you are a current student or young professional, please contact Carol Marine (cmarine@chapa.org) for pricing. No refunds will be provided to those who register but do not attend the conference.

Session 2 (Nov. 6): Affordable Homes Act and the new Office of Fair Housing and Fair Housing Trust Fund

• SPEAKER: Eric Shupin, Chief of Policy, EOHLC
• MODERATOR: Whitney Demetrius, Director of Fair Housing and Municipal Engagement, CHAPA
• Esme Caramello, Director, Housing Affordability Unit, Office of the Attorney General
• Matthew Robayna, Principal, Boston Communities
• Elizabeth Rust, Director, Regional Housing Services Office

Eric Shupin is the Chief of Policy at the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC). Eric leads the development and implementation of the state's vision and policy agenda for housing and community development. Prior to joining EOHLC, Eric was the Director of Public Policy at Citizens' Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA). Eric has a B.A. and J.D. from The George Washington University.

Whitney Demetrius's bio is available on CHAPA's website.

Esme Caramello recently joined the Office of Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell as Director of the new Housing Affordability Unit. Prior to joining the AGO, Esme was a Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, where she taught Housing Law and Policy and served as Faculty Director of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. Esme has over 20 years of experience as a housing lawyer, focusing on trial and appellate litigation in fair housing, consumer protection, foreclosure, eviction cases, and policy advocacy to promote housing stability and opportunity. 

Matthew Robayna brings over a decade of affordable housing experience through a range of roles in the affordable housing industry, joining Boston Communities as a Principal in 2024. At Boston Communities, Matt leads acquisition and development efforts for Boston Communities growing pipeline of affordable rental and homeownership projects. Prior to joining Boston Communities, Matt served as a Senior Project Director at WinnDevelopment where he led efforts on development projects in MA, CT, NY, and NJ for which he secured over $317M of financing for the construction of 900 units of affordable and supportive housing. He has previous experience in roles at the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) and The Neighborhood Developers. Matt earned his Master in Science in Real Estate Development and Master of City Planning degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Miami.

Elizabeth (Liz) Rust has been assisting MetroWest communities and their residents with all aspects of affordable housing, from helping people find housing, to supporting municipalities create and manage affordable housing in their communities for 20 years. Liz led the establishment and continues to direct the innovative Regional Housing Services Office, an inter-municipal collaborative in the Boston Metrowest area, providing proactive monitoring, rental assistance and other program administration and local support to assist communities create and manage affordable housing. As a housing practitioner, Liz helps to work through issues and barriers on a regular basis to help make housing more available and accessible.