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Archive for month: June, 2014

Fairfax County Planning Commission Subcommittee Recommends Tabling RSU Amendment

June 27, 2014
June 27, 2014

Michelle Krocker, Executive Director, Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance

 On June 9, the Residential Studio Committee of the Fairfax County Planning Commission voted to recommend that the review of the Zoning Ordinance Amendment for Residential Studio Units be tabled. This recommendation will be voted on by the full Planning Commission at their July 24 meeting and it is almost certain that it will be adopted.  After months of committee hearings and community meetings throughout the county, the RSU amendment will be quietly put to rest.

What were the factors that defeated this proposal? They were many and varied, including:
  •  virulent community opposition;
  •  fear of overcrowding, which is a real issue in some parts of the county;
  • an abject lack of knowledge by the larger community about the issue of housing affordability – who needs it, current housing costs, income levels of the workforce, the impacts on our quality of life;
  • a zoning ordinance that didn’t allow the flexibility needed to develop these units;
  • absence of leadership from the BOS in communicating the county’s growing unmet housing needs and helping to shepherd a community discussion that was balanced and respectful.

Is Fairfax County committed to providing housing that is affordable for all its residents? 

While the Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted the Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness in 2007 and the Blueprint for Housing in 2010, they have done very little in the ensuing years to provide the resources needed to implement these plans. In 2009, when the county reduced the Penny Fund for Housing to a half cent, the financial resources to leverage private capital to preserve and develop new affordable housing were lost (the remaining half cent is used to pay the debt service on the bonds issued for the Wedgewood Apartments acquisition). From 2005  to 2009, the One Penny Fund preserved over 2,200 units of affordable housing. Since 2009, the number of new or preserved units serving households earning less than $64,000 or 60% of area median income has declined significantly.

The FY2015 Housing and Community Development budget provides $5 million for new construction or a preservation project of 120 units, and approximately $3 million for Bridging Affordability, a rental subsidy for households moving out of homelessness. This is a paltry amount of funding for a county of this size and wealth. As has been famously said, “show me your budget and I’ll show you your priorities.”

Other policies to provide funding for housing have been studied and tabled by the Board of Supervisors, the most recent being the ‘3-2-1 policy’ which would secure a contribution from commercial development in transit and high density areas of the county to support the development of workforce housing. This policy is currently in place for the Tysons redevelopment area, but Board members felt that if applied to other areas of the county, it could deter new commercial development which has slowed down in the last few years. However, both Arlington and Alexandria have commercial development fee policies in place, and the result has been a significant increase in resources for affordable housing with no apparent impact on commercial development.

The unwillingness to adopt new, proven funding strategies, combined with minimal local investment in housing programs means that the county is falling farther and farther behind in meeting the goals for the 10 Year Plan and the Blueprint for Housing. How can homelessness be addressed in a meaningful way if the stock of affordable housing isn’t growing? How does Fairfax County ensure that there is housing in their communities for the workforce in the retail, hospitality, health care, public sector and entry level jobs? How does the county promote the development of stable, affordable housing for homeless children, youth aging out of foster care, persons with special needs, seniors on fixed incomes and low wage working people?

The need for a community conversation about housing

The final motion on the RSU amendment at the June 9 meeting included a recommendation stating that “there be a broader community dialogue about affordable housing, including a discussion on how best to provide for a range of housing opportunities….that will serve the County’s current and future residents at all income levels.” The Alliance enthusiastically endorses this recommendation, and believes the time for discussion is now. An honest community discussion would hopefully break down some of the barriers of mistrust and misunderstanding surrounding housing, and engage more members of the community in building consensus for solutions.

The growing shortage of affordable housing and the severe cost burden for an increasing percentage of the county’s population is not unique to Fairfax County. This is a challenge that threatens the vitality and sustainability of the entire region, and some jurisdictions have made progress in increasing their affordable housing stock through a variety of financial and land use tools. As the largest jurisdiction and the engine of job growth for the region, Fairfax County should be the leader in addressing the housing issue. Instead, they are lagging far behind due to negligible investments and the absence of vision to address the unmet housing needs of its residents both today and in the future.

 

0 Comments/in HAND News, Areas Of Need /by H.A.N.D.

2014 HAND Annual Meeting Video & Photos

June 24, 2014
June 24, 2014

One of the favorite highlights of our 2014 Annual Meeting & Housing Expo was the video honoring our award winners. Thanks to the generous support of this year’s video sponsor Enterprise, we were able to feature each award winner and hear their story.

The video was filmed by the team at Momenta Creative and we were fortunate to work on location at APAH‘s beautiful Arlington Mill Residences. We invite you to watch this tribute and learn more about our award winners!

Another new addition to this year’s events are our event photos, including the HAND Photo Booth. Along with a collection of images of the luncheon, expo and plenary session, attendees could pose for photos and show their love of affordable housing. This year’s photos show how much fun it can be to participate in collaboration, innovation and transformation together. Please feel free to download the images here and share them on your social media networks.

VIEW PHOTOS FROM THE ANNUAL MEETING & HOUSING EXPO!

PASSWORD FOR PHOTO DOWNLOADS: HANDAM2014

0 Comments/in HAND News, Member Events & Success Stories /by H.A.N.D.

Center for Regional Analysis Report: Housing Choice Vouchers in the Washington, DC Region

June 11, 2014
June 11, 2014

The George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis (CRA) announces the publication of Accessing Opportunity: Housing Choice Vouchers and Affordable Housing in the Washington, DC Region.  This paper examines the geographic and demographic patterns of where residents who use Housing Choice (Section 8) Vouchers live within the region.  This research examines the characteristics and location of census tracts with high concentrations of Housing Choice Vouchers. It then looked at the affordable neighborhoods that voucher-holder currently are not living to better understand the opportunities available to low-income households. Finally, this research examined possible explanations for the concentration of voucher-holders in relatively few census tracts.  The paper’s central finding is that voucher-holders are concentrated in highly segregated neighborhoods with poverty rates of 11.1%, compared to the regional average of 7.7% across all communities. Click here to download the report, and click here to access other CRA research reports.


0 Comments/in HAND News, Opportunities /by H.A.N.D.

Supporting Our Region’s Veterans Report: Assessing the Network of Services Available for Post-9/11 Veterans and Their Families in Northern Virginia

June 9, 2014
June 9, 2014

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia, in partnership with the United Way of the National Capital Area and with the support of Deloitte Consulting, is pleased to present “Supporting our Region’s Veterans.”  This report was developed to gain a more sophistocated, data-driven understanding of support available to Northern Virginia’s vetereans, and to provide the Community Foundation, United Way NCA, and other local community-based organizations and philanthropists with the insights needed to strategically target and coordinate contributions and grant dollars toward the greatest needs.  Deloitte Consulting invested over $80,000 in pro-bono support to perform the research and publish the report.

The basic findings of this three-year study indicate that although veterans in our area are well supported at the macro-level with access to a wide variety of government and nonprofit services, there are several ways that the local philanthropic sector can target its dollars to better support the needs of Northern Virginia’s veterans at the micro-level.  Veterans in particular find services to be overly complex and sometimes difficult to access.  Greater coordination between government and nonprofit providers to create a seamless web of services would improve the lives of veterans and military families.

Please click here to download the report.

0 Comments/in HAND News, Areas Of Need /by H.A.N.D.

Annual Meeting Award Winner Spotlight: President’s Choice Bob Pohlman, Executive Director, CNHED

June 4, 2014
June 4, 2014

Within the D.C. affordable housing and community development network, there are countless of champions who have affected monumental changes in the way we create dynamic neighborhoods for D.C. residents. Yet, there are also a few living legends that have been those change-agents and more. They have risen to the level of leader, mentor and friend to those in need. Bob Pohlman, the HAND 2014 Housing Achievement President’s Choice Award winner, is one of those living legends.

Before becoming executive director of the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing & Economic Development (CNHED), Bob was a 23-year veteran with the D.C. government where he held the roles of Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development, Deputy Mayor for Finance and Chief Executive Officer. He also served on both the District’s Comprehensive Housing Strategy Task Force and, more recently, was appointed by Mayor Vincent Gray to serve on the Housing Production Trust Fund Advisory Board. Bob had been a pivotal figure in organizing a citywide housing advocacy campaign to gain dedicated funding for the Fund, which has gone on to become one of the national’s most successful housing trust funds in existence. It has invested more than $400 million to help finance the production of more than 8,000 affordable homes for D.C. families in need.

Bob has been CNHED’s executive director since its inception in 2000. During his tenure, he has led the 140-member organization to great heights by ensuring that residents with low- and moderate- incomes have proper housing and opportunities in neighborhoods throughout the District. In addition to leading major housing advocacy campaigns, such as the Trust and the creation of a rent subsidy program and a fast-track affordable housing acquisition fund, CNHED’s consistent policy work led to five D.C. agencies adopting a consolidated funding process for permanent supportive housing. Over the course of the past 14 years, CNHED has trained 5,000 community development professionals, published a number of research reports and policy papers, and disseminated a weekly industry newsletter to thousands of subscribers.

For the past 40 years, Bob has been a vital and respected leader. However, he recently announced that he plans to retire at the end of 2014.

“I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish on behalf of DC residents,” said Bob. “I fully expect CNHED to grow stronger and even more effective in the years to come.”

HAND is pleased to recognize Bob Pohlman with the President’s Choice Award, one of HAND’s highest honors. We look forward to seeing you at the HAND Annual Meeting so you can offer your congratulations to him in person! # HANDAM2014

0 Comments/in HAND News, Member Events & Success Stories, HAND Member Profiles /by H.A.N.D.

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