How much affordable housing does Lexington need? First study in 10 years to find out
As Lexington begins plans to expand its urban growth boundary by 3,000 acres, the city has hired a firm to conduct an affordable housing study.
The city has not conducted a study to determine how much affordable housing it needs and at what price points since 2014 when czb found there are about 15,000 households that need assistance to rent. Of those, only about 9,000 receive some kind of financial help, leaving 6,000 households without help to find housing.
Under the czb study, affordable is defined as equal to 30% or less of gross income.
The study helped launch Lexington’s affordable housing fund in 2014 and the city’s Office of Homelessness Prevention and Intervention.
The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council voted unanimously Tuesday during a council work session to hire EHI Consultants for $188,000. A final vote is expected in coming weeks.
The study will look at the number of units needed now and in the future, and how much it will cost. The report will involve interviewing various stakeholders, including affordable housing developers, and issue implementation recommendations.
“It will look at how far we have come,” said Charlie Lanter, commissioner of housing advocacy and community development. It will also look forward to the next 10 years and needs for affordable housing.
Lanter said they hoped the study will be completed in nine months.
Since 2014, the city’s affordable housing fund, with help from other federal funding, has built or retained more than 3,200 units. Some of the newer units the city’s affordable housing fund has helped create include the Alcove at Russell, which has 200 units, and Kearney Ridge Apartments, which has 252 apartments.
The council recently passed an ordinance that could double the amount the city contributes to its affordable housing fund. Typically the city sets aside $2 million a year for the fund but under the new ordinance, 1% of the city’s general revenues would go to affordable housing — roughly $4 million a year.
Council also set aside more than $10 million from federal coronavirus relief funds for affordable housing.
The move to update the city’s affordable housing needs also comes after the council voted earlier this year to expand the urban growth boundary. It’s the first time the city’s growth boundary has been expanded since 1996. A need for more affordable housing was one of the main arguments for those who pushed for expansion.
A committee tasked with identifying areas to be added has narrowed the search to a little more than 3,000 acres. However, there are currently no incentives or programs to guarantee affordable housing will be built in any new expansion area.
The Urban County Planning Commission is expected to vote Oct. 19 on whether to accept the committee’s recommendations.
This story was originally published October 10, 2023 at 4:16 PM.
