Danny Hidalgo
@dhidalgo.bsky.social
Political Scientist at MIT. Academic focus is on Latin American politics. Advocacy focus is on housing policy in Cambridge, MA and beyond.
We're hiring a Research Support Associate at MIT Political Science. Work with me, In Song Kim, Rich Nielsen, and Naoki Egami on methods and political economy. Great opportunity for those considering a PhD in the social sciences. One-year position with possible extension.
@cambridgemass.bsky.social has a housing crisis. Yet unaccountable "Neighborhood Conservation Districts" (NCDs) run by the city drastically decrease housing construction and increase down-converted unit losses compared to equivalent parcels outside NCDs. dan-sprague.github.io/2025/03/30/ncd
Neighborhood Conservation Districts Suppress Housing in Cambridge, MA
Stories of variation around a mean.
dan-sprague.github.io
Back on the beat with a story about a dramatic upzoning for Cambridge. It's now legal to build up to four stories, by right, citywide, with an affordable-bonus up for two more stories. How Cambridge leapfrogged every YIMBY reform to build Haussmann for Harvard: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
How Upzoning in Cambridge Broke the YIMBY Mold
By making buildings up to four floors legal by right across the city, the hometown of Harvard and MIT has set a new benchmark for the abundant housing movement.
bloomberg.com
I can’t believe it - after years of advocacy, exclusionary zoning has ended in Cambridge. We just passed the single most comprehensive rezoning in the US—legalizing multifamily housing up to 6 stories citywide in a Paris style Here’s the details 🧵
Cambridge residents: The City Council is debating a reform to legalize multifamily housing citywide. Important votes are coming up—please express your support. ✉️ Email council@cambridgema.gov soon 💡 Short emails work great Learn more: abettercambridge.org/multifamily_housing #CambMA
A big development in Cambridge politics today: At the ordinance committee hearing on ending exclusionary zoning, pro-housing advocates actually outnumbered opponents 38-28. If you know local housing politics, you know how rare this is - especially for a Wednesday at 2pm. Times are changing.
Thrilled to announce the release of Uprooted: How Post-WWII Population Transfers Remade Europe with Cambridge UP 🎉🎉 The book argues that accommodating the displaced population can strengthen states and benefit local economies in the long run. 📚 [Amazon: tinyurl.com/24m2mbkf] See thread below:
@profmusgrave.bsky.social Can you add me to polisky? Thanks!