Fairfax County is at a crossroads when it comes to affordable housing — particularly for low- or moderate-income households.
The number of people spending more than 30% of their monthly income on housing is growing: more than 44% of renters and about 23% of homeowners. Rents are also rising at a faster pace than incomes.
To find creative affordable housing solutions, Fairfax County is teaming with the George Mason University School of Business, Virginia Housing Development Authority and the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors to hold a policy hackathon on Wednesday, March 11, called the 2020 Housing Challenge.
We’re seeking new ideas from residents, students, housing advocates, industry professionals and policy experts, and this event aims to come up with innovative policies to:
Enhance public awareness and support for affordable housing.
Engage employers and non-traditional partners to provide affordable housing.
Facilitate faith communities to participate in the affordable housing solution.
Teams will be asked to develop and present solutions to one of these three challenges, and a panel of judges will evaluate and award cash prizes to the top teams.
A Pre-Challenge Webinar will be held on Monday, March 2, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. and provide an opportunity for participants to get a complete understanding of the objectives of the event and to ask questions of policy experts to help in their preparation for the challenge.
This event builds on the Housing Hackathon held last January, and the county plans to consider all proposed solutions from this year’s challenge event to advance its affordable housing efforts.
“The Board of Supervisors recognizes and is committed to affordable housing as one of the county’s most critical priorities in the years ahead. Ensuring that price-appropriate homes are available for all who desire to live and work in our community will take no small measure of creativity, out-of-the-box thinking and community engagement. The 2020 Housing Challenge is a significant effort in making that connection in order to move us forward together.”
– Fairfax County Chairman Jeffrey C. McKay
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