Intergovernmental group to coordinate transportation, housing and economic development projects and identify affordable housing funding sources
It has been less than four months and plans are already
underway to implement key recommendations from Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich's comprehensive
housing plan
.
This unprecedented plan outlines
strategies to develop and preserve quality affordable and workforce housing, and
create more housing choices throughout the state. The plan also supports the
development of leadership both on the state and local levels to design programs
and policies that will support well-built, quality housing for all
Illinois
families.
One of the first actions taken by the
governor’s office was to create an intergovernmental working group to better coordinate
transportation and economic development activity with affordable housing
planning. This
Development Coordination
Committee is comprised of the Ill. Dept. of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity (DCEO), Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, Ill. Dept.
of Transportation, Ill. Housing Development Authority, Ill. State Toll
Highway Authority, and Ill. Dept. of Natural Resources.
By creating this working committee,
which met for the first time in March, the state hopes to better align planning
resources and services around development and distribute them more evenly
throughout the state.
For the first time, these state departments
are formally working together to coordinate with local officials, major
employers, planning organizations and developers on housing, commercial and
transportation developments. The
Development Coordination Committee has been charged to review local development
proposals and explore state funding priorities to develop incentives for
communities that are undergoing or have implemented a comprehensive affordable
housing plan. The
committee
will also work to identify potential state land available for the development
of affordable housing proposals.
As it stands, the success of the governor’s housing plan
is reliant upon coordinated efforts such as this to identify funding resources
for and to conduct effective outreach to municipalities around the state that
are working to develop innovative housing programs. Just this week, Joyce
Probst, of the Office of the Governor, announced to the Metropolitan Mayor’s Caucus that DCEO staff
are being trained on employer-assisted
housing initiatives
. This
will assist DCEO staff in working with companies concerned that their workforces
cannot afford to live near work.
This type of information sharing will ensure that state planning efforts
will help to promote and institutionalize innovative local initiatives and
reduce barriers to the rehabilitation and development of affordable
housing.
MPC looks forward to working with
key stakeholders, especially developers, business and municipal leaders, to
ensure that this new committee is informed by their “on the ground” expertise
and available as a valuable sounding board for future activities linking
housing, transportation and economic development.