Critical Issue 3: Diversified Housing for Creative Communities

The Diversified Housing for Creative Communities panel discussion was designed to focus on entrepreneurial approaches to creating diversified housing stock. The objective was to look at what communities can do now to promote a wide range of housing options.

Kermit Skinner, Town Manager, Town of Manteo

Kermit Skinner explained how Manteo's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance was developed. Dare County has had trouble with affordable housing for many years. Today, the main issue is affordable housing for entry-level professionals and government employees. The town worked with the county to form the Dare County Development Corporation in order to find ways of dealing with this issue.

Town officials began looking at other communities that had an Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance in order to determine what might work for Manteo. Bloomfield, Illinois, had an ordinance that required 20 percent of all new development be affordable residences. Bloomfield's ordinance also gives developers a density bonus and waives many development fees in order to make it as painless as possible for new developers.

There was little opposition to the plan except from a few citizens who are philosophically opposed to affordable housing. There are currently four of these developments in the planning phase. Unfortunately, the housing market is now flat in many areas across the U.S., so none of these developments have been completed.

Kermit Skinner
407 Budleigh Street
Manteo, NC 27954
(252) 473-2133
fax (252) 473-2135
email: skinner@townofmanteo.com

Erin Trebisacci, Town Planner, Town of Manteo

Erin Trebisacci followed Mr. Skinner to explain Manteo's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance in greater detail. Any subdivision with six or more lots is subject to the Manteo ordinance. Manteo's definition of affordable housing is based on the federal definition of affordable housing: affordability is when a household pays no more than 30 percent of its annual income on housing. The median annual household income in Manteo is currently $54,000. Anyone making less than 65% of the median income is considered to be low income.

The regulation requires developers to sell the affordable units in phases along with other units. These lots will remain affordable but their price will be adjusted for inflation. There are four groups who can apply for these units. Eligibility for a unit is ranked in the following order:

town employees or residents who have lived or worked in Manteo for the past 12 months;
people who have been employed by local businesses for the past 12 months;
residents of Dare County; and,
the general public.

There is no payment in lieu option; i.e., developers are not allowed to pay a fee to avoid building affordable units. Owners of affordable units are prohibited from renting out the property.

Erin Trebisacci
407 Budleigh Street
Manteo, NC 27954
(252) 473-2133
fax (252) 473-2135
email: trebisacci@townofmanteo.com

Buddy Milliken, Owner of the Milliken Company

Buddy Milliken discussed Woodsong, a development in Shallotte, NC, that has a diversified housing stock. The philosophy at Mr. Milliken's company is that housing is seen from the perspective of affordable living, not affordable housing. With this in mind, the social costs of building the cheapest building on the cheapest land is examined. Construction costs, operating costs, maintenance expenses, external costs (such as transportation expenses) and the return on investment all have to be considered.

The Village of Woodsong is being developed with a mixture of apartments and single family homes in order to have a diversified housing stock of large, medium and small dwellings. Smaller houses are built with facades that allow them to blend seamlessly with larger homes to improve the social character of the neighborhood. This is done by mandating that the façade does not vary by more than a given width on each street. The smaller homes, therefore, appear from the street to be as large as the bigger homes. This mixture of affordable and larger houses reduces the stigmatization of "affordable housing" and is visually appealing to all.

Simplified construction reduces the price of homes. Inexpensive details (such as porch molding and posts) increase the aesthetic value of the home. So while they details add character to both a given house and the community at large, they do not increase the price of the home to an unreasonable level. Using the above techniques helps blend affordable housing into the larger community.

This type of neighborhood design also allows for what we call the "Grow Home." A Grow Home is a dwelling that can be expanded as needed. Since all of the streets in Woodsong are lined with houses of similar width and character, expansion of existing housing does little to alter the character of the neighborhood. For example, a housing unit may need an additional room to accommodate the arrival of a new child. This room will be added to the back of the existing house, reducing the visual indication that this home has become bigger. That house may be bigger, but from a neighborhood standpoint, nothing has changed. In sum, the Grow Home allows the whole neighborhood to grow with the families that live there, naturally creating diversified housing.

Buddy Milliken
529 Sylvan Street
Shallotte, NC 28470
(910) 754-9292
fax (910) 755-9292
email: themillikencompany@ec.rr.com

Torrence Perry, T2 Developers, Inc.

Torrence Perry discussed what T² Developers, Inc. does in Hertford, NC, to address affordable housing. The company's philosophy is to buy low and sell low. They begin by buying a dilapidated house; then they deconstruct it to its foundation and frame before rebuilding the house with new materials.

Many of the old houses in Hertford are old mill homes that have a solid foundation and sturdy frame meaning that the company is able to save money. It is much cheaper to rehabilitate a home than it is to build a new one.

T² Developers haven't encountered many barriers to their business in Hertford; the town has been very supportive of their efforts and has been very flexible with respect to the town's zoning laws. As far as policy suggestions are concerned, Mr. Perry suggested that it would be helpful if small towns could offer workshops to help people with credit problems find solutions for purchasing a home.

T² Developers also tries to hire laborers locally. This also helps to keep their costs low and creates needed jobs in the community. It generally takes 60 to 90 days to completely rehabilitate a home. The company hopes to decrease this amount of time in the hopes of making the homes even more affordable.

Torrence Perry
306 Dobb St.
Hertford, NC 27909
(252) 426-7474
fax (252) 426-5254
email: t1@tsquaredevelopers.com

Ben Brown, The Congress for the New Urbanism

Ben Brown completed the panel discussion with an overview of the New Urbanist Katrina Cottage. The New Urbanist movement is a return to old urban design. After Hurricane Katrina the Congress for the New Urbanism held workshops in the Gulf Coast in an effort to address the need for emergency housing. The Katrina Cottage was the result of a one week charrette in Biloxi, MS. Katrina Cottages are small, sturdy houses that may be temporary or permanent. Some of the permanent models are modularly designed so that they can be expanded into full-sized dwellings.

After Hurricane Katrina, the federal government sent FEMA trailers to the area to act as temporary housing. These trailers cost a total of $70,000 for three months when including transportation, installation and maintenance costs. The Katrina Cottage was designed by world class architects to replace the FEMA trailers in order to improve the quality of life of disaster victims.

These cottages replicate the style of large single family homes but are built on a smaller scale. Thus the only compromise people have to make to live in one is size. A two acre Katrina Cottage village is now being built in Ocean Springs, MS.

Having a walkable, sustainable community is one of the major tenets of New Urbanism. Walkable communities save money. The average family would save $9,000 a year if they owned one less car.

Katrina Cottages are attractive, stable dwelling units. They can be used as permanent modular homes to help a community address the issue of diversified housing.

Ben Brown
224 Cedar Hills Dr.
Franklin, NC 28734
(828) 508-5002
email: benbro@earthlink.net

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