Diverse housing is needed in WMass. for longterm sustainability, report says
SPRINGFIELD — The best step forward to address the housing crisis in Massachusetts, particularly the western region of the state, is to find creative solutions, researchers say.
A 130-page report by the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute, which came out in July, identifies the housing needs of all four counties in Western Massachusetts: Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin and Berkshire. The institute was commissioned by Way Finders, the nonprofit housing provider in Springfield.
“In order to have a sustainable and thriving population, so that we can continue to keep our schools open and employers here, we need to have homes of all types and serving all incomes,” said Megan Rhodes, housing and livability program manager of the Franklin County Regional Council of Governments.
This means building more housing, not just single-family homes, she said.
Population loss, Rhodes said, is one of the biggest threats to the region. And it’s a factor of the housing crisis in the commonwealth.
In Western Massachusetts, the lack of housing opportunities impacts the economy, said Javier Reyes, chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, at an event Wednesday at Tower Square to discuss the report.
“When we’re attracting new faculty ... to come, it has been a challenge (for them) to find housing,” he said. “You saw sort of the vacancy rates that we have, and it has been a challenge. We have seen that. I have met with candidates, and candidates report that,” he said.
There are about 1,150 affordable housing units in the pipeline, but to meet the current and future demand for housing, the report estimates the four counties in Western Massachusetts need to build, rehabilitate or preserve about 17,000 units by 2035.
“If the region created all the housing it needs, we would generate nearly $7.5 billion in one-time economic activity including approximately 76,000 jobs across the region,” the report said.
Local developers, like Valley Community Development Coalition and Way Finders, said they face funding challenges and limited resources, which affects how often affordable housing can be created.
In 2023, Western Massachusetts municipalities issued 0.8 building permits per 1,000 residents in 2023, less than half of the statewide rate and more than five times below the national rate, the report said.
“Massachusetts has not been building enough housing,” said Kerry Spitzer, senior research manager at the UMass Donahue Institute.
Everyone is a stakeholder in housing issues, the report said, and there are multiple ways for people to get involved. Local officials can look at the ways zoning can facilitate housing production, create a housing production plan or create a committee or advocacy group to mobilize residents.
Advocates or residents, the report encourages, can become involved at meetings in their municipality and speak up for new housing opportunities.
“We really need the ‘Yes-in-my-backyards’ to show up and say that zoning change is okay. It’s going to be fine. And actually, this is what we need for our community,” said Rhodes.
more news from Western Massachusetts
Read the original article on MassLive . Add MassLive as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
