Mixed Income Communities Initiative (MICI) - Policy Initiatives

Inclusionary Zoning

One of the largest barriers to creating affordable housing centers on the regulatory practices of local governments. In the 1990's suburban counties and towns began to impose zoning restrictions and code requirements that resulted in excluding affordable housing from being developed.

Nonprofit developers, and for-profit developers of affordable housing are facing insurmountable barriers created by local governments such as:

-Mandating large minimum lot sizes, driving up land costs per house;
-Requiring large minimum house sizes, making construction more expensive;
-Placing moratoria and long-term bans on multifamily construction;
-Requiring fewer homes per acre than local comprehensive plans call for, driving up the per-unit land cost; and
-Mandating exterior finishes, such as stone or brick facades, that drive up construction costs.

To overcome these barriers, affordable housing advocates, including ANDP, are promoting the adoption of "inclusionary" zoning policies. Inclusionary zoning is a type of zoning ordinance that would provide incentives to developers for building affordable housing. In one such scenario, developers would be rewarded for making 15-20 percent of new developments meet affordable housing rates. In return, developers would receive the right to build more units, faster approvals and permits, tax or impact fee abatement, or other incentives. As a result, communities would be able to diversify and strengthen their tax base, retain a competitive advantage in attracting employers, and help reshape economically and environmentally damaging commuting patterns.

In the metro Atlanta region, the City of Atlanta, Fulton County and DeKalb County have recently begun to consider Inclusionary Zoning as one method of improving access to affordable housing.


Fair Share Mixed Income Housing Policy

To no one’s surprise, affordable housing choices increase the further you drive from the city. Unfortunately, most job centers are within the City and adjacent counties. The resulting ‘spatial mismatch’ between jobs and housing requires more people to commute much longer than should be necessary. These commuting trends are evident in Atlanta’s well-documented traffic congestion and air quality concern. Given Atlanta’s continued disparity between growth in the northern regions and economic isolation in the southern, MICI recommends the adoption of a regional plan to correct this growing imbalance.

MICI proposes to work with Atlanta municipalities to develop a Fair Share Mixed Income Housing Plan to encourage municipalities to create and maintain their ‘fair share’ of affordable housing. MICI believes that municipalities ‘fair share’ of affordable housing units should be relative to employment and wage levels within their communities. MICI envisions a Fair share policy agreement, enacted by local governments, which will combat zoning conditions that lead to economic stratification of housing, limited housing options, and traffic congestion.


Affordable Housing Trust Fund

Housing trust funds are distinct funds established by city, county or state governments to receive ongoing dedicated sources of public funding to support the preservation and production of affordable housing and increase opportunities to access decent affordable homes. Unlike current affordable housing funding in many cities, counties and states, housing trust funds are derived from dedicated public revenue - thus, they are not subject to the political whims and budget allocations.

While the State of Georgia has a State Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless, it has no fund focused on supporting the broad array of affordable housing issues. Given the particular needs of the Atlanta region, a trust fund concentrated and structured to help address the region’s specific issues would be ideal.

MICI and other stakeholders in the region are jointly exploring successful models of housing trust funds employed by other communities across the United States.

Additional information may be found at: The National Housing Trust Fund Campaign or The Center for Community Change (under the "About Housing Trust Funds" link, you will find lists of city, county, and multi-jurisdictional housing trust funds).