State DHCR Completes First Phase of Unprecedented Housing Needs Study

ALBANY, NY (05/14/2008)(readMedia)-- The State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) has completed and released the first of a series of regional reports on New York’s housing needs. The unprecedented study involved meetings and interviews with dozens of local officials, advocates, developers and other members of the housing community in the North Country region.

Governor David A. Paterson said the report represents “a new level of outreach to and coordination with local officials who best understand the needs of their communities. These reports will provide us with a powerful tool to help determine how New York State’s housing and community development programs can best be targeted to meet the needs of our residents.”

DHCR Commissioner Deborah VanAmerongen said “This study is an effort to truly understand the housing needs of communities across the State. Our goal is to reach out and gather first hand information from local leaders and housing professionals about their priorities and their needs as they see them. That kind of outreach has never been attempted before.”

Priscilla Almodovar, president and chief executive officer of SONYMA/HFA, said "These housing needs studies are the first step in recognizing that each community has different housing needs and a different housing stock. Only by being sensitive to these differences can the state's housing finance agencies be better able to target its scarce resources and be more responsive in addressing this need. I applaud DHCR's efforts in undertaking this important assessment of our housing needs across New York State."

Alan S. Hipps, executive director of the Housing Assistance Program of Essex County and of the Adirondack Community Housing Trust, said “DHCR has diligently canvassed the local, practicing professionals of the North Country in order to assess our regional affordable housing needs. Such an undertaking should be applauded. This regional analysis will be a helpful development tool for sound project planning.”

Pat Lucia, executive director of the Plattsburgh Housing Authority, said “I am very pleased to have been able to participate in the North Country Regional Report on Statewide Affordable Housing Needs. The report provides concise, factual information of the status of housing in the North Country. As in any housing report that covers such a vast area there are a variety of needs and barriers to be reviewed. This document accurately identifies the issues in an unbiased and thorough report.”

VanAmerongen created the Office of Policy Research and Development at DHCR in part to develop a Statewide housing needs study. The office is taking a regional approach and began its efforts by examining housing and community development needs in the North Country, which consists of Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties. A total of nine regional studies will be conducted, with individual reports for each region of the state. Once all nine reports are completed, a Statewide Housing Needs Study will be issued.

To prepare the North Country report, DHCR staff traveled throughout the region meeting with local officials and housing professionals from pertinent county and city departments (planning, community development, economic development and housing).

DHCR also met with representatives from Neighborhood and Rural Preservation Companies and other not-for-profit organizations, social service organizations which have affordable housing as a stated mission of their organization and affordable housing developers from the private sector with regional experience. DHCR staff also gathered information by making site visits and tours throughout the region with local officials.

The housing needs report also includes U.S. Census and American Community Survey data intended to identify demographic and housing related trends. DHCR staff also analyzed information from current local planning documents, including several studies on the unique housing needs in the Fort Drum area.

VanAmerongen will release and discuss DHCR’s second regional study -- on the Finger Lakes area – on Friday at the Rural Opportunities Inc., Housing Summit in Geneva, NY. That will be followed by reports on the Capital Region, Long Island, Mid-Hudson Valley, Western New York, the Southern Tier, Central New York and the Mohawk Valley. Due to the extensive amount of existing information about housing needs in New York City, DHCR will not prepare a regional report but will include information on New York City housing needs in its final statewide report.

The North Country report and all future regional studies will be available on the DHCR website -- www.nysdhcr.gov -- under “key documents.”

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