Housing Needs Study OK’d by DDA

Out of a $150,000 cost for a housing needs assessment in Washtenaw County, the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority will be paying $37,500. Action by the DDA board approving the grant came at its June 4, 2014 meeting.

The firm selected by the county’s office of community and economic development (OCED) to do the needs assessment is czb LLC out of Virginia. [.pdf of RFP for the needs assessment] The current needs assessment will update a report done in 2007. According to a memo from OCED staff to the DDA, the final report will “provide a clear, easy to understand assessment of the local housing market, identify current and future housing needs, and provide specific and implementable policy recommendations to advance affordable housing. The goal for this update is to include an analysis that links transportation cost and accessibility, as well as other environmental and quality of life issues to the location of affordable housing.”

The RFP for the needs study describes the timeline for the work as including a draft for review due at the end of October 2014, with a final presentation due in mid-December.

In addition to the DDA grant, money to cover the complete cost of the study will also come from a HUD Sustainable Communities Grant ($75,000) and a possible contribution from the city of Ann Arbor’s housing and human services advisory board (HHSAB).

In 2005, the DDA board voted to approve $15,000 for the housing needs assessment that the county undertook around that time.

This brief was filed from the DDA offices at 150 S. Fifth Ave., Suite 301. A more detailed report will follow: [link]