In Lafayette, Louisiana, homelessness and the lack of affordable housing are creating strain, prompting NIMBYism among community members and leaving civic leaders uncertain of a clear path forward. Understanding this challenge and the tension it can create throughout a city, ULI members gathered community members and leaders to dig into the difficult challenge of housing the city’s unhoused and most vulnerable residents. Supported by the ULI Homeless to Housed (H2H) grant initiative, Catholic Charities of Acadiana in Lafayette and ULI Louisiana gathered more than 300 residents for a series of community workshops to better understand the challenge and to outline pathways toward more deeply affordable housing and services for people most in need.
Convened by ULI and Catholic Charities, multidisciplinary local and organizational leaders from real estate, social services, health care, law enforcement, government, and faith-based groups gathered with area residents for a series of workshops to discuss potential real estate–based solutions to the community’s affordable housing shortage. Concordia, a New Orleans–based architecture and planning firm, led the interactive workshops, each of which was designed to uncover the depths of the housing challenge in Lafayette and cocreate potential solutions for additional affordable housing communitywide.
The workshops, held over the course of several months, were carefully designed to create an action plan built on a foundation of community input. Insights from previously unhoused individuals and others similarly affected by homelessness and the lack of quality affordable housing were integral to the discussion and should help guide the actions of those who can create the needed change.
- The first workshop identified necessary potential partners to advance housing solutions, and workshop teams also identified the potential role each organization might play in a future citywide housing strategy.
- The second workshop explored various housing options that could be included in a housing strategy, including adaptive use of existing buildings and new construction. Case studies from other cities helped the community envision the potential application of each building solution in Lafayette.
- The third workshop evaluated the city’s geography and began to pinpoint where, within the city limits, these housing solutions could potentially be located.
- With a community–identified preference for adaptive use approaches to housing provision, the final workshop detailed how such a project could come together. This workshop included details regarding site selection, approaches to acquisition, assembling a project team and service partners, and evaluating potential financing options.
In addition to generating consensus around a topic that often stirs opposition and NIMBY (not in my backyard) responses, these workshops brought people together in a holistic manner to identify community-supported and real estate-driven solutions. The result was a practical plan of action—the Lafayette Homeless to Housed Action Plan—to catalyze the production and preservation of deeply affordable housing with critical supportive services.
Homelessness has been increasing . . . but we know it is solvable. Working with ULI Louisiana and the Homeless to Housed team has given us the opportunity to build consensus around how to make our community a place where everyone has a home. We have worked toward a community-backed plan that we can present to local government, developers, and service providers to show real estate solutions for those [who face] homelessness. We are hopeful that our efforts will move the needle and help make housing affordable and attainable for all.
The new H2H Action Plan outlines several key recommendations for the community and the city of Lafayette.
1. Build organizational and institutional capacity. This recommendation includes the establishment of an authority to pursue federal and state funding to support development, redevelopment, and revitalization efforts. It will also provide tools for land banking and clearing titles. The action plan calls for the formation of a new, local nonprofit organization to develop and operate a facility and manage the investment fund that makes it possible. An implementation committee would also be formed to provide ongoing coordination between housing, health care, law enforcement, and social service providers.
2. Promote infill policies that support new development while preserving existing neighborhoods. The Lafayette Economic Development Authority’s Elevate North Lafayette Program will play an important role in expanding local developer capacity and building knowledge to pursue small-scale, infill development. A new infill housing toolkit can help mitigate the risk of infill work by creating standard approaches that make it easier and more cost-effective to build new units in older neighborhoods. A new pilot finance program could also support a select group of small-scale infill projects, thereby providing critical support in future homeownership and economic development pursuits.
3. Fund new, high-quality, sustainable housing for everyone. The introduction of new housing types in the market would help reduce the wait list for new attainable housing and provide safe, quality places for people to live and receive services. A crisis response center is in the planning stages to meet the most immediate housing and service needs, reducing the burden on social service providers. Expanded rapid rehousing resources are also called for, as is permanent supportive housing for newly housed individuals, which can help lead to their greater long-term stability. Incentives should also be provided to fund affordable housing construction along transit routes and near job locations.
4. Make wise public investments to reincentivize investment in the core of the city. The city’s sewer system requires repairs to provide needed capacity for new housing in the areas that are most in need of new housing options. New public spaces and amenities, including upgraded sidewalks and crosswalks, are needed to improve quality of life for residents.
By implementing these strategies, the H2H Action Plan aims to foster long-term positive change by addressing homelessness and housing insecurity in Lafayette, and by creating a more connected, healthy, and livable community.
This effort identified a set of actionable recommendations and funding strategies. Also, of equal importance, it garnered the community and political support necessary to advance implementation and adoption. The H2H initiative helped Lafayette produce community-led, data-informed strategies to present to government representatives, private developers, and neighbors, thus serving as the foundation for long-term advancements that can better meet the needs of the community’s vulnerable residents. This work is also replicable in almost any community that is on the precipice of change. The challenging conversations and the thoughtful workshops—involving formerly unhoused individuals, real estate developers, social service providers, elected officials, and others—created a movement that is sure to have an impact. As one former mayor noted, “We can put legs to this.”
Editor’s note: ULI Louisiana, along with four other district councils (ULI Philadelphia, ULI San Antonio, ULI San Diego–Tijuana, and ULI San Francisco), received a Homeless to Housed (H2H) local technical assistance grant to explore real estate–driven solutions to homelessness. As a part of ULI’s Terwilliger Center for Housing, H2H works to catalyze the production and preservation of deeply affordable supportive housing to end the U.S. homelessness crisis. The work is made possible with the generous support of Carolyn and Preston Butcher and a growing number of ULI members.
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