What is Housing Tomorrow?
Over the next year, the Polk County Housing Trust Fund (PCHTF) plans to engage stakeholders throughout the region in a discussion of affordable housing as part of Housing Tomorrow, our first regional plan for housing. The plan will seek to address the concentration of traditional affordable housing options, encourage development near nodes and along transit corridors, and promote a diverse housing stock that will fit the needs of our diversifying population and allow our neighbors to age in place.
The process will engage key stakeholders including government agencies, developers, nonprofits, economic development officials, social service providers, housing agencies, and other interested parties through the creation of a steering committee. The planning process will also include numerous opportunities for public engagement through open meetings and surveys distributed throughout the region. Housing Tomorrow will also focus on engaging minority and low-income communities who are often difficult to reach in planning processes by working with local advocacy groups and holding meetings in low-income neighborhoods.
When finished, Housing Tomorrow will act as a tool to help our region’s jurisdictions address housing challenges as they may arise. This nonbinding plan will offer policy recommendations and specific action steps to encourage the preservation and development of affordable housing options and to help low-income families overcome barriers to stable housing. This collaborative effort will bring new parties to the table to engage in a conversation about affordable housing that will raise awareness of our community’s needs and work to see them addressed in an equitable manner.
Housing Tomorrow has been made possible by generous contributions from the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines, United Way of Central Iowa, and Polk County.
Find out more about community housing policy here.
