Dallas City Council members received a staff briefing Wednesday on how the city will increase its supply of affordable housing.
The press conference followed two and a half hours of public comment and several hours of discussion regarding the bond election.
Potential zoning reforms could make it easier for developers to build homes by reducing minimum lot sizes and allowing multifamily housing in single-family residential districts. But councilors reminded residents that no viable proposals were on the table.
The City Planning Commission, which makes recommendations to the council on planning and zoning issues, will discuss proposed code changes before the Dallas City Council votes.
The city's Housing and Homelessness Task Force discussed the reforms at a December meeting, and opinions were divided, with dozens of residents expressing support and opposition to the reforms.
The staff's briefing is in line with a five-signed memo submitted by Dallas City Councilman Chad West in November to explain the process to the city and provide information on potential development code and building code changes. We are asking them to explain the impact. City Council members Adam Bazaldua, Jaime Rezendes, Janie Schultz and Paula Blackmon also signed the memo.
Child Poverty Action Lab data
West said at Wednesday's meeting that he hopes this discussion will be a good opportunity to explore these options. He called for the zoning reform discussion to be moved to the City Planning Commission for further development before returning to the full council.
“Homeownership is becoming less and less achievable,” West said. “Data from the Child Poverty Action Lab shows that the need for rentals in the city is very high. So, in my mind, we should consider the only option on the table. ”
Dallas-based Child Poverty Action Lab is a research-based nonprofit organization dedicated to combating and ending child poverty.
Andrea Gilles, Dallas' Interim Director of Planning and Urban Design, and Andrea Udrea, the department's assistant director, provide an overview of zoning regulations occurring in other cities, a possible path forward for Dallas, and reform. We introduced the potential impacts that this could have. About urban housing supply.
The city's 18 residential districts are defined based on lot size, including single-family neighborhoods, and range in size from 5,000 square feet to full acres. Districts have constraints such as density caps, setback requirements, and use restrictions.
“This is not a welcome provision for many types of housing,” Udrea said, adding that current zoning regulations have barriers that make it more difficult to build homes.
City officials have several options for changing the code, including adding accessory dwelling units or homes that are often built in backyards, and allowing “contextual” mixed-use infill development in single-family residential districts. shared.
“There is no single solution”
“There is no single solution,” Udrea said. “Neighborhoods in transition can be very stabilized by providing housing options.”
Udrea said other cities are also using these reforms to allow for the development of different types of housing with varying price points and gradual increases in density.
Changing the minimum lot size will affect every part of the development and will require additional effort from city staff.
“We think this is going to be a long-term conversation. So when we touch on lot size, we need to look at the code comprehensively,” Udrea said.
At the rally, more than a dozen residents, including developers, academics, housing advocates, and faith leaders, spoke in favor of land use reform.
“Housing is a human right,” said the Rev. Roy Atwood, community associate pastor at First United Methodist Church of Dallas, who voiced support for the bond program's housing fund and zoning reform.
“A safe place to sleep”
“Every citizen in this city deserves the stability of having a roof over their head and a safe place to sleep at night,” he said. “Unfortunately, the high cost of housing in Dallas leaves too many of our neighborhoods homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.”
Matt Hinterlong, a Dallas-based housing developer, said the reforms being considered are the best, least expensive solution to increasing much-needed development.
“Dallas needs affordable housing,” Hinterlong said. “We need to eliminate zoning requirements and encourage higher-density housing and alternative housing types in the city. The national average home price used to be less than $300,000. Now, only in the past five years Well over $400,000.”
A small number of residents voiced opposition to the zoning reform, citing a desire to maintain the same form and aesthetic of single-family residential neighborhoods.
Homeowners say their strongest opposition is directed toward development-by-right, which allows developers to build homes without public zoning hearings, as long as the homes comply with code. ing.
“Infringement is a deal breaker,” said Ed Zahra, who lives in Dallas. “What this actually does is deprive residents of their right to a public hearing on this issue…The city can cherry-pick land and inject new legal lots without changing all the existing lots.” I can not do it.”
