Phoenix City Council Unanimously Approves Major Affordable Housing Initiative

Press release from the City of Phoenix:

June 16, 2020

PHOENIX- Today, Phoenix City Council unanimously approved a new citywide affordable housing initiative that will work to address the many housing needs in the nation's fastest-growing city. Earlier in the day, Phoenix Housing Department staff and Mayor Gallego joined U.S. Housing Secretary Ben Carson as he toured city housing sites.

The plan approved today will address the need for an additional 163,000 housing units in Phoenix. Housing costs have grown in Phoenix as wages have stayed stagnant. This, along with a dearth of affordable and workforce housing options, have widened the gap of housing accessibility for far too many residents. The plan seeks to address the following areas:

• Prioritize New Housing in Areas of Opportunity
  
• Amend Current Zoning Ordinance to facilitate more Housing Options
  
• Redevelop City Owned Land with Mixed-Income Housing
  
• Enhance Public-Private Partnership and Establish Alternative Funding Sources
  
• Implement Cost Saving Policies for Housing Development
  
• Increase Affordable Housing Developer Representation
  
• Expand Efforts to Preserve Existing Housing Stock
  
• Support Affordable Housing Legislation
  
• Initiate Housing Options Education Campaign
  

  This citywide plan will require partnerships between both outside organizations and other levels of government. To that end, Mayor Gallego discussed with U.S. Housing Secretary Ben Carson how the city might better partner with the federal government to address the city's housing needs. Today's vote and visit by Secretary Carson is yet another important step in making Phoenix a city that works for everyone.

This press release was produced by the City of Phoenix. The views expressed here are the author’s own.