On October 10, 2017, ULI Charlotte gathered a panel to discuss practical tools for Affordable Housing.  Moderated by Dionne Nelson of Laurel Street Residential with panelists David Steinwedell of Affordable Central Texas, Chris Kizzie of Enterprise Partners, and Dick Taft of Rocky Mountain Communities.  Below are several take-aways shared by attendees:

• We need bold local leadership, both public and private, to champion affordable/workforce housing policies and strategies in Charlotte, realizing there are political limitations in North Carolina.  Denver and Austin had that leadership.
• ULI and its members can play a key role in influencing Charlotte’s program, maybe starting with a TAP like in Austin.
• As an open-ended fund, Affordable Central Texas returns 6%-8% to investors, which is comparable to higher returns on closed-ended funds that are realized only when the assets are sold.
• Transferring ownership of un- or under-utilized publicly-owned land to non-profit developers has to be part of the affordable housing conversation.  That includes the school system, city, county, transit and any other public agency that controls real estate.
• Density bonuses can be increased significantly, and lowering parking requirements along transit lines or mixed-use corridors can reduce overall development cost/unit.
• Funding of affordable housing needs to be place specific and creative.

ULI Charlotte has created a resource page for our continued affordable housing conversations.  We are adding resources regularly – www.charlotte.uli.org/housing.

Click here for handouts for this meeting.