Housing Land Advocates Annual Conference - 2026

Housing Land Advocates are back at the Smith Memorial Student Union on Friday, October 16, for their 2026 annual conference. It's a full-day affair, running from 8 AM to 5 PM, with doors opening at 7 AM if you want to get settled early. The venue is at 1825 Southwest Broadway, right on the Portland State University campus.

This year's theme is By Ourselves: Housing Advocacy without Federal Partnership, and the whole day is built around one question: how is Oregon going to meet its housing goals in an era without federal partnership? It's a heavy premise, and the program spends the day picking it apart from a few different angles. The keynote is "Housing for People with Mental Illness," given by Tom Stenson, the Deputy Legal Director at Disability Rights Oregon. From there, the day moves into four panels: "State Rule Changes for Supportive Housing," "State-Directed Housing Planning: Who Does What?", "Constructability Issues for New Housing," and "Where are the Duplexes? Small-Scale Rentals and Middle Housing Reform." Between the keynote and the panels, you'll cover supportive housing, state planning, the actual building process, and the push for middle housing reform.

If you're in the field, there's a practical side to this one: lunch is provided, and AICP and CLE credits are available for attendees. If you can't make it to the student union in person, there are tickets for the livestream so you can follow along from home. Just a heads-up that the organization runs a no-refund policy on tickets. The conference runs from 8 AM to 5 PM, with doors opening at 7 AM at the Smith Memorial Student Union, 1825 Southwest Broadway.