New Construction
- Initiate Meaningful Regulation / Certification Reform
- Open up zoning options to allow for greater "mix" of blended housing options
- Evaluate a process by which builders could qualify to pull permits (local license? proof of compliance with basic insurance requirement already required by law?)
- Promote Consistency in Codes, Regulations, Enforcement
- Where possible, coordinate building code adoption and amendment between city, county, and other area entities
- Consolidate some building/development departments and/or functions within city government
- Consolidate some building/development departments and/or functions between city and county government (functional consolidation)
- Fair & workable process for appealing changes on grounds of affordability impact
- Promote Diversity of Housing Types and Development Patterns
- Remove barriers to innovative design concepts
- Allow "trade-off" incentives for builders & developers with new concepts to make the new concepts financially feasible
- Promote a philosophy of enhancing and supporting existing market opportunities and market forces (rather than attempt to create ones that do not exist)
- Avoid temptation to "design from scratch" without regard to what the market is demanding
- Make true local market measures (buying patterns, demand trends, etc.) a meaningful part of master plans for future growth
- Establish an Awards Program for Innovation in Housing, Development & Residential Design
- Model Best Practices of Other, Comparable Communities
Urban Living & Development
- Seek and expand incentives for efficiency improvements of high-consumption segments of housing stock.
- Dual track strategy (state and local levels)
- Add to the city’s legislative agenda as a legislative priority
- Local participation in P.A.C.E. and similar programs
- Establish a voluntary scoring system for rental housing
- Track safety information, code compliance
- Archived utility histories
- Develop a local “Angie’s List” format where tenants can “review” landlords and where landlords can market good properties
- Expand existing programs/establish new programs to develop resources and revenues for financing
- New methods for housing improvements
- Identify pilot programs to evaluate advantages and disadvantages of broader rental registration and inspection programs
- Example: West Central
- Establish “Housing and Neighborhoods” office
- Public/private partnership
- Provide landlord/tenant mediation
- Collect and maintain housing and neighborhood data and information
- Offer a “resource library”
- Administer voluntary reporting & scoring system referenced above
- Administer life skills and financial literacy training (or function as a central clearinghouse of otherwise available options
Affordability
- Pursue and expand assistance programs for low-income residents
- Expand use of land trusts (as used by UNA), with a rent-assist component included / added
- Expand support for Council of Churches’ rent buy-down program (and/or similar programs)
- Establish pilot program utilizing CDGBs to facilitate affordable housing projects
- Expand use and availability of transitional housing options
- Explore greater usage of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs)
- As a part of Economic Development plans and strategies, incorporate and account for the availability of (and future need for) necessary workforce housing options
- Encourage consortium (and other private) models to expand availability of affordable housing
- Businesses
- Private Investors
- Social Capital
- Sweat Equity
- Banks & other Local Lenders
- KEY: Seek more “bottom-up” (as opposed to “top down”) solutions to address affordability
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.