On the evening of September 7th, RAILMesa put together a forum with three local experts to talk about housing in Mesa and what it means to our community. Our intention was to keep the entire event to an hour, and we mostly kept to that promise. The forum was held inside the East Valley Institute of Technology’s Culinary Arts building in the Jacaranda room -- the event hall had about 100 chairs set up, facing a small stage with a projector screen, and the American and Arizona flags on either side. Attendees received a copy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Book “What Matters: Investing in Results to Build Strong, Vibrant Communities” -- this book is actually a collection of essays trying to answer the question “What does it take to measure and fund positive social change?” -- We thought this was an important topic along the light rail corridor. The book features a collection of essays by 80 authors with wide expertise on the social, cultural, and financial implications of orienting programs and funding around outcomes. If you’re interested in getting your own copy, you can order one for free from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco online. Attendees also received a little handout we call the “RAIL Development Activity Reports” which showcases a variety of projects that are either under-construction, completed or in development along Mesa’s light rail corridor. Mesa’s Light Rail Corridor is the hub of culture and development in Mesa. Featuring world‐class arts, restaurants, employment, and more, the Corridor has seen significant revitalization and continued investment. Since 2008, Mesa’s Light Rail Corridor has seen more than half‐a‐billion dollars in investment in transportation, retail, residential, education, manufacturing, global logistics, arts, and culture. We had help from our wonderful moderator, Michael Rohd -- Michael is the founding director of the Center for Performance and Civic Practice (CPCP) and the Sojourn Theatre company. Rohd has worked around the nation to design and lead theatre-based community engaged, participatory projects and processes focused on social practice, civic practice and local capacity-building. He is a former faculty member at Northwestern University and held the Doris Duke artist residency at Chicago’s Lookingglass Theater Company. As Institute Professor, Rohd will teach and work as part of the “ensemble lab” — a think tank and platform for experimenting and collaborating with artists, scholars, and community leaders from around the world to creatively address issues within and beyond the arts and the academy. Some of our presenters had powerpoint presentations, which you can find here.