Affordable Housing
INTRODUCTION
A prosperous thriving community requires essential physical structures and infrastructure, including safe food, water, housing, utilities, roads, and waste management. Each of these can dramatically affect residents’ quality of life.
Adequate and affordable housing is a key component of economic development. A community can create new jobs but without housing for the new workers, either the jobs will remain unfilled or the workers will commute into the community, denying the community additional economic benefits.
Adequate housing also provides stability and a sense of security; essential for maintaining good mental health. When individuals have a safe and stable place to call home, they can focus on improving their economic status and emotional well-being, build stronger relationships/communities, and experience a higher quality of life. A safe, stable place to call home is especially foundational to well-being and critical for children's development. “Kids with any level of housing insecurity – low or high – had worse self-reported health at age. They also reported worse mental health.”[i]
Homes are where jobs go to sleep at night!
THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROBLEM
Berea is in the midst of an affordable housing crisis, not unlike the rest of Kentucky and the nation.
The root of this crisis is the “Great Recession” of 2008 when the housing market collapsed. Less than half of the houses were built in 2009 as 2005 and we lost over 24% of the skilled construction workforce.[i] Since 2012 housing starts and construction employment slowly grew until the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today America, Kentucky, and Berea have yet to rebound to pre-recession levels. It is estimated that Berea will need to build about 400 units over the nxt five years to catch up to our housing needs, with a particular focus on affordable housing.
As builders returned to construction many focused on high-end housing to recover downturn losses. This left little construction of smaller, affordable, and middle housing even as Madison County grew from 83,471 in 2010 to 98,319 in 2024, an almost 18% growth)[i]. Today, Madison County has a housing gap of 2,578 housing units. By 2029, the county’s gap will increase to 6,723 housing units (3,159 rental and 3,564 for sale)[ii].
An increase in homelessness (especially first-time & employed) is an indicator of a supply-demand mismatch in the housing market.
[i] https://worldpopulationreview.com
[ii] https://www.kyhousing.org/Data-Library/Housing-Gap-Analysis/Pages/default.aspx
[i] US Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/spotlight/2022/the-construction-industry-labor-force-2003-to-2020/#:~:text=Employment%20in%20the%20industry%20grew,10%2C%20similar%20to%20recent%20years.
SOLUTIONS
America has dual and often opposing expectations for housing. We want housing to be affordable and available for everyone, and, we expect the homes we buy to increase in value (as an investment)- shelter for today and investment vehicle for tomorrow. “This approach creates a kind of temporal disjunction around the housing market, where what appears sensible for one generation (Please, no more construction near me, it’s annoying and could hurt my property values!) is calamitous for the next (Wait, there’s nowhere near me for my children to live!)”[i].
Creating affordable housing is a complex balance due to many factors, including federal, state, and local policies, market-based material costs, available land and land costs, skilled workforce, and financing. Local governments, state, regional, and national stakeholders, private companies, financial institutions, and nonprofit organizations must co-design a housing supply built on locally-led solutions.
Some of the ways that Berea can increase affordable housing:
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Update zoning & barriers to development
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Create build-ready land/lots
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Support and promote unconventional construction methods
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Engage state and federal officials
The Berea Planning and Zoning Commission has taken some initial steps in 2024 by revising the Local Land Use Ordinances to allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and reducing required building setbacks and side yards. In 2025 the P&Z Commission will update the Berea Comprehensive Zoning Plan as required every five years and this will be another opportunity to address Berea’s needs.
However, the P&Z Commission’s powers are limited. The City Council must approve all P&Z recommendations and only the City Council can direct city resources to addressing affordable housing and homelessness.
[i] The Atlantic, AMERICA’S MAGICAL THINKING ABOUT HOUSING, Derek Thompson, March 21, 2024
What I will Do
As a member of the Berea City Council, I promise to:
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Advocate for the formation of a Berea Housing and Homelessness Task Force to
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Seek community input from citizens, for-profit and nonprofit local organizations, and other stakeholders
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Identify strategies and examples from across the nation
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Identify local, state, and federal sources of financial assistance
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Provide recommendations to Berea City Council and Administration
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Collaborate with State Legislators
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