What is the Housing Supply Accelerator?

The month of May is Affordable Housing Month. Rural Resurrection continues to look at ways to help communities to provide safe, decent, affordable housing.

The National League of Cities (NLC) and the American Planning Association (APA) are partnering on the Housing Supply Accelerator. It is a partnership that both entities are hoping will help resolve the housing crisis that the country is facing.

The effort is being led by APA President Angela D. Brooks, FAICP, and NLC President and Tacoma, Washington, Mayor Victoria Woodards. Angela, a recent keynote speaker at the Nebraska Planning Conference, has dedicated her career to improving safe, affordable, and equitable housing options.

What is It?

As the NLC states, the Housing Supply Accelerator is:

“A partnership between the National League of Cities (NLC) and the American Planning Association (APA), the Housing Supply Accelerator is a national campaign to improve local capacity, identify critical solutions, and speed reforms that enable communities and developers to work together to produce, preserve and provide a diverse range of quality housing by realigning the efforts of public and private stakeholders in the housing sector to meet housing needs at the local level.”

The goals of the Housing Supply Accelerator are to:

• Provide Expertise and Perspective on the local housing supply challenges.
• Elevate National Awareness about how governments are essential and collaborative partners in addressing the need for new housing.
• Advocate for Equitable Solutions that improve local capacity, identify critical solutions, and refine processes that help communities on the subject.
• Develop a National Strategy that is targeted at helping to increase production, preservation, and improvement of the local housing supply throughout the United States.

Llyod House LIHTC Project, Photo Courtesy of National Equity Fund

Doing More Together

While not completely unprecedented, the collaborative efforts of the two organizations on the Accelerator is an indication of the importance of the issue. Having the two entities work together means a more comprehensive result. A result that both planners and city administrators can utilize to improve the housing stock of their communities.

Provided below is an interview from the National Community Stabilization Trust with Lauren Lowery, Director of Housing at the National League of Cities (NLC) that discusses the project at length.

Its Potential Impact on Rural Communities

Through their campaign, the two organizations plan to develop model practices, ordinances, and resources that are aimed at accelerating and incentivizing local approaches to land use, housing development, and preservation.

With the final report in hand, rural communities should have the tools in hand to help address their own housing issues. Of course, not all of the tools in the toolbox will apply to smaller communities. However, the resources provided should have some aspects that are applicable to small towns in rural areas as well. It may take quite a bit of gleaning and tweaking of the information provided, but there should be some usable aspects that can help your community’s housing supply.

Do Your Research

For more information on the Housing Supply Accelerator, check out the dedicated pages on the project from each of the organizations involved in this project:

American Planning Association

National League of Cities

Each site has a good amount of information on the subject and links to further reading as well.