Town staff presented the Fiscal Year 2022 Affordable Housing Annual Report to Council Wednesday night highlighting the Town’s housing needs and progress towards reaching Council’s affordable housing goals.
“Even as we see the need for affordable housing growing and the challenges to deliver affordable housing projects become increasingly complex, the Town has made meaningful progress over the last year consistent with our affordable housing goals,” says Sarah Viñas, Director of Affordable Housing and Community Connections. “The fact that nearly 30% of all housing units approved last year were affordable, is a testament to the Town Council’s continued commitment to creating affordable housing opportunities for all in Chapel Hill.”
Highlights from the Annual Report summarizing the Town’s affordable housing progress over the last year include:
Deploying $2.5 million in funding to community partners to support affordable housing development and preservation projects
28% (123) of the total housing units approved by Council were affordable; including 102 in Town-initiated projects on Town land at Jay Street and Trinity Court
Enhancing our Employee Housing Program, resulting in our first homebuyer assistance award and increased interest from employees.
Partnering with the other local governments in Orange County to create a County-wide Manufactured Home Action Plan to address the preservation needs and displacement threats to manufactured home residents.
Creating and presenting options to the Council to expedite our review process for affordable housing development. If approved, an expedited review process could drastically change the Town’s ability to create more affordable housing more quickly.
Completing renovations at several of our Transitional Housing and affordable rental units and supported one of the families in the program in achieving their dream of homeownership
To help best make progress towards addressing the community’s significant housing needs, the Town is implementing an Affordable Housing Plan that focuses on: funding affordable housing projects, initiating development and preservation of housing, owning and managing housing, and creating and implementing housing policies. The Affordable Housing Quarterly Report is a tool to monitor the Town's progress in implementing the plan, share the status of projects funded with Town resources, and summarize key community indicators related to housing in Chapel Hill.
Interested in learning more about the Town’s affordable housing efforts? See the Town’s Affordable Housing Quarterly Report and staff’s Annual Report to Council, and www.chapelhillaffordablehousing.org!
