What Will City Council Candidates do for Chapel Hill Housing Crisis?

Four seats on the Chapel Hill City Council are up for grabs in the November elections (Image)

Across the country, a lack of affordable housing is becoming a critical issue for more and more families who are struggling to make sufficient income to pay skyrocketing rents. Over the last two decades, while inflation-adjusted incomes have remained relatively flat, median asking rents have increased by a whopping 70 percent. This has led to households that are spending 60, 70 or even 80 percent of their incomes on rent each month. Given that the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development defines affordable housing as no more than 30 percent of household income, it is clear that the rental burden on households is becoming difficult to bear. Chapel Hill is no exception to this nationwide trend, and candidates in the races for City Council have been consistently speaking out about their priorities to make housing in Chapel Hill more affordable.

Chapel Hill has been a pioneer in the affordable housing space, particularly within the state of North Carolina, with the 2011 Chapel Hill Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance mandating that new developments set aside 15 percent of units “at prices that are affordable to low- to moderate-income households” (or 10 percent of units in areas zoned as part of the “town center”). In addition, over 70 percent of Chapel Hill voters approved a $10 million bond in 2018 to help build and preserve 700 affordable housing units in the town. However, there is only so much the Chapel Hill Town Council can do about affordable housing. In North Carolina, cities do not have “home rule”; this means that municipalities must be designated power by the North Carolina state legislature to take stronger local action to address affordable housing, beyond a bond measure. Progressive attitudes and policies have been unable to prevent rising rental costs in Chapel Hill’s private housing market or addressed the related issue of stagnating incomes.

Due to the affordable housing crisis in the Chapel Hill community, many of the candidates running for elected office in Chapel Hill are prioritizing solutions to a lack of affordable housing as they fight for votes. Candidates mostly agree on the goals of the town, but there are a variety of policies that are being proposed by council candidates. For example, some candidates are advocating changing allowing duplexes, triplexes and quads in areas that are currently zoned for single-family housing only. This stance has proven to be quite controversial among candidates in Chapel Hill, even as it seems it may be one of the most effective, long-term solutions to address the “missing middle” of housing stock in the affordable housing crisis. On the other hand, most candidates agree that Chapel Hill should continue to pursue the building of affordable housing options on town-owned land, given that it is one of the most cost-effective ways to build affordable housing stock. In addition, several candidates are advocating for UNC Healthcare to include subsidized affordable housing as part of the new Eastowne medical development, primarily for their less well-paid employees.

In addition to Chapel Hill’s existing affordable housing problems, the root causes of the problem do not seem likely to disappear in the near future. UNC Chapel Hill’s Master Plan indicates that as the student population grows, the on-campus housing stock will decline. Some candidates, therefore, wish to have a conversation about the future relationship between student housing and the town, with one candidate specifically advocating for strategic placement of future student housing along transit corridors. Among the seven candidates vying for three seats, there are a number of novel and even controversial ideas to further Chapel Hill’s commitment to building a stable affordable housing stock. The exploration of these various ideas seems likely to lead to innovation and bold new commitments on affordable housing.