MADISON, Wis. — Madison’s mayor is pushing a new set of initiatives to address the need for affordable housing in the city.
The Housing Forward package of initiatives will include efforts to increase housing choice, create affordable housing, combat displacement, ensure seniors can stay in their homes, and end homelessness. Mayor Satya Rhodes Conway said the initiatives are especially important given Madison’s potential for drawing new residents in the coming decades.
If current trends continue, the city could be home to 70,000 new residents and 40,000 households by 2040, according to city officials.
“Madison is an attractive city for people to move to, and we need it remain inviting and accessible to our long-term residents as growth occurs,” said Mayor Rhodes-Conway. “We need to push as hard as we can on affordable housing while dramatically increasing the amount of housing being built and helping people stay in the neighborhoods they have always called home.”
According to city leaders, options to address issues like affordability are hampered by state law, which prohibits the city from pursuing rent control, rental inspections or requiring affordable units in new developments.
Instead, the city plans to address the housing crisis by purchasing land for affordable housing, investing in homeownership opportunities for people of color, pushing for a variety of housing options in neighborhoods throughout the city, amending zoning and permit processes to make it easier for the private sector to build more housing, and more.
“The Housing Forward agenda shows that the City is moving forward on all fronts,” said Patrick Heck, District 2 Alder and member of the Housing Strategy Committee. “Madison needs more affordable housing, and it also just simply needs more housing. The City is working on both those fronts while also trying to help people stay in their homes and neighborhoods, increase homeownership for people of color, and support people experiencing homelessness.”
Read the full set of Housing Forward initiatives here.
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