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Atlanta notified the federal government in May that it is pursuing policies to remove barriers to affordable housing, according to a report required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Approaches to implement the policies include the city’s pending proposals to allow more residences to be built in residential neighborhoods. This part of the plan has generated measurable opposition, prompting Atlanta’s policy makers to step back.
In a section of the report to HUD that asks about, “Actions taken to remove or ameliorate the negative effects of public policies that serve as barriers to affordable housing such as land use controls, tax policies affecting land, zoning ordinances…,” Atlanta responded that it began making such changes in 2018:
- “The updates consist of a range of zoning ‘fixes’ that include solutions to increasing housing diversity, reducing parking requirements, and allowing greater density to increase the overall supply of housing….”
Incidentally, these changes are in keeping with a $5 billion grant program the Biden administration announced June 1. Grants, if funded, would be available to governments that make the types of changes in housing development policies Atlanta contemplates.
This story originally appeared on SaportaReport. Click here for the full version.
I thought the civic center’s plans for HUD/Section 8 housing would be GREAT if it EVERY happens? Atlanta needs affordable housing near downtown BAD!!!