Ellen Harpel of Smart Incentives and Lisa Sturtevant of LSA describe work being done at the intersection of housing policy, economic development and affordable housing finance. The goal is to provide a better understanding of the importance of inclusive communities and to give concrete examples of ways local jurisdictions can develop inclusive and integrated land use, economic development and housing policies.

1. Housing and
Economic
Development
Strategies for
Inclusive Communities
ELLEN HARPEL
LISA STURTEVANT
C2ER WEBINAR
OCTOBER 2018

2. About us
Ellen Harpel, PhD
◦ President, Business Development Advisors
◦ We work with economic development leaders to increase business investment and job
growth in their communities
◦ Founder, Smart Incentives
◦ We help communities design and manage incentive programs that are effective, fiscally
responsible, and responsive to community needs
Lisa Sturtevant, PhD
◦ President, LSA
◦ We develop data-driven housing needs assessments and actionable planning strategies
to expand housing options that support healthy economies, sustainable communities
and healthy families and individuals.
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 2

3. © 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 3

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“We want to invest in a community where our
employees enjoy living.”
• presence and support of a diverse population
• transit and transportation options for commuting
employees
• diversity of housing options, availability of
housing near potential sites for HQ2, and pricing
Search for HQ2

5. Lessons from HQ1
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 5
Rents in Seattle have increased
3 times
faster than US rents
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ,2005-2016
Median price of a
Single-family home in Seattle
$777,000
Source: Zillow

6. What is inclusive economic
development?
Economic growth where all members of
the community benefit from shared
prosperity and where local strategies
focus on addressing economic inequality.
6 © 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA

7. Why Does Inclusive
Development Matter?
7
Individual and family
well-being
Physical and mental
health and well-being
Student achievement
and academic success
Economic self-sufficiency
and upward mobility
Robust and
sustainable local
economic growth
People can both live and
work in the community
Shorter commutes for
everyone
Communi>es that
a?ract businesses and
investment
Diverse
communi9es
Equitable access to
opportuni>es and
services
Communi>es in which
everyone can prosper
Reduc>on in dispari>es
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA

8. A change in approach is
needed
Housing policy, transportation
planning, and economic
development efforts remain
siloed.
How can they work together to:
◦ Increase access to high-quality,
affordable homes
◦ Ensure that all residents have
access to good work
opportunities
◦ Create healthy, opportunity-rich
neighborhoods
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 8

9. Economic development and inclusive
community initiatives share many
objectives
Economic development programs exist to serve the
communities where they operate
Business support is a means to that end – not the end
itself
Economic development organizations do more than
offer incentives for business attraction
They work to make their communities better places to
invest, work and live
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 9

10. Economic development objectives
increasingly intersect with community
planning interests
In a low unemployment environment, helping
businesses find workers and residents connect to
available jobs becomes critical.
Accordingly, economic development leaders are
increasingly focusing on:
◦ Housing availability and affordability
◦ Transportation access
◦ Education system
◦ Training and credentialing
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 10

11. Why housing matters for
economic growth?
11
Nationally,
$1.6 trillion a year in lost
wages and productivity
attributed to insufficient
housing production
Source: Hsieh, Chang-Tai and Enrico MoreM. 2018. Housing Constraints and SpaPal MisallocaPon.
NBER Working Paper Source: Hsieh, Chang-Tai and Enrico MoreM. 2018. Housing Constraints and SpaPal MisallocaPon.
NBER Working Paper
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA

12. Why housing matters for local
economic growth?
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Hard data and anecdotes from businesses and
workers demonstrate that more housing options:
o Helps people both live and work in the community, leading
to shorter commutes and less traffic
o Makes it easier to attract and retain workers
o Promotes income integration, which is associated with
faster overall economic growth
o Broadens the tax base

13. What happens if there is not enough
housing affordable to workers?
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Workers look for housing further out → longer
commuters, more traffic congestion
Businesses have a harder time finding workers →
fewer restaurant, retail, admin, building services and
health care options

14. What happens if there is not enough
housing affordable to workers?
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Workers spend more on housing → less spending
on goods and services in the local economy
Without affordable homeownership opportunities
→ may leave for other regions

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Housing and
transportaPon
bring them
together
Businesses
want and
need access
to talent
Diverse
workforce
needs
Residents
want and
need access
to quality jobs

16. How communities are
changing their approach
Organization
Strategy
Incentives
Land use
Financing
Construction
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 16

17. Housing
an
Inclusive
Denver
Housing Opportunities staff
within the Office of
Economic Development
• OED invests in
affordable housing units
• Provides and funds a
variety of assistance
services
• Works to mitigate
displacement from
gentrification
• Intent to double
Affordable Housing
Fund to $30m annually
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Denver's legendary quality of life … must be
continuously created and sustained for all who
live here, with strong, diverse neighborhoods
and housing that together ensures the promise
of economic mobility. The city is committed to the
preservation, rehabilitation and creation of
affordable housing.
Office of Economic Development website

18. Florida
2030
How to create a robust,
competitive and inclusive
economy
How to accommodate
expected population growth
Goals include:
• Diverse, attainable
housing
• Access to public and
private mobility services
• Connect population and
economic centers
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Affordable housing is the challenge across the state.
This is a workforce issue. This is a family issue. This
is a retiree issue. This is everybody across the state
being impacted one way or another.
Tony Carvajal, Florida Chamber Foundation

19. Houston
New tax abatement
guidelines
In order to receive tax
breaks:
Residential developments
must provide affordable
housing
Companies must try to
hire workers from poor
neighborhoods and the
area surrounding the
project
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 19

20. Columbus
and Franklin
County, OH
insight 2050 planning
scenarios for the Mid-Ohio
Regional Planning
Commission
Evolving housing needs:
What types of places will
attract the skilled labor forces
our businesses require?
Are today’s land use plans
and development regulations
aligned with the goal of
attracting residents and
businesses, helping
communities to remain
competitive and improve their
tax bases?
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 20

21. Silicon
Valley
Leadership
Group
Business-oriented group
advocating for
construction of new
homes in Silicon Valley
Supporting efforts at the
local and state levels to
increase housing options
and affordability
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 21

22. Twin Cities
Developing
employment-driven
housing demand
forecasts
Bringing CEOs and
Mayors together to
discuss housing needs
Forging partnerships
among businesses,
developers and
advocates
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 22

23. Hilton Head
Resort & hospitality
industry finding it harder
to recruit workers
Growing awareness of the
limited availability of
housing affordable to
low- and moderate-wage
workers
Developing a workforce
housing strategy that
intentionally connects
housing needs with the
island’s future economic
prosperity
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 23

24. Aspen
Skiing
Company
Workforce
Housing
Repurposed an old RV
park to create housing for
seasonal workers.
Worked with local
community and
government.
Small units but include up
to 3 bedrooms and
guaranteed to remain
affordable to the
company’s workers over
the long-term.
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 24

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A housing strategy working in concert
with economic development will
make your community more
compe99ve.
Housing is cri9cal to a?rac9ng talent.
If you don’t build it, will they come?

26. What can you do?
Easy
Compare economic
development strategy and
housing elements in your
community’s
comprehensive plan
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES and LSA 26

27. What can you do?
Intermediate
Conduct a scan of policy
and program tools that
are already available to
you – incentives,
financing, regulations and
land use – to determine
how they can be better
coordinated and
deployed.
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 27

28. What can you do?
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Advanced
Create forecasts of the amounts, types,
locations and prices/rents of housing
that will be needed to support future
growth in the workforce.
Use this analysis to engage with the
business community, local officials,
developers and others to expand
support for expanding the housing
supply.

29. Contact
Ellen Harpel
571/212.3397
ellen@smartincentives.org
Sign up for our monthly
newsletter at
www.smartincentives.org
Follow us:
@SmartIncentives
Lisa Sturtevant
703/598.1220
lisa@lisasturtevant.com
www.lsaplanning.com
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 29

30. Thank you!
© 2018 SMART INCENTIVES AND LSA 30