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Affordable Housing Board asks for presentation on 2024 Lawrence Housing Market Study
Summary
The Affordable Housing Advisory Board received the 2024 Lawrence Housing Market Study (a KU Urban Planning student project led by Dr. Hahn) and asked staff to arrange a presentation by the author and participating students to clarify findings and recommendations before the city’s upcoming housing study procurement.
The Affordable Housing Advisory Board on May 8 received the 2024 Lawrence Housing Market Study, prepared by University of Kansas urban planning students under the guidance of Dr. Hahn, and directed staff to invite Dr. Hahn and student authors to present the report at a future AHAB meeting.
Board members said the study contains data they want explained before using it to shape policy. “I’d love to know what the questions are, or what initial reactions we got from this report,” said Maria Perello, an AHAB member, who asked that authors walk the board through the graphs and recommendations. The board’s staff liaison, Leah Rosen, said she would reach out to Dr. Hahn and aim to schedule a presentation by the next AHAB meeting if the professor’s schedule allows.
Members stressed student housing and the interaction between University of Kansas housing supply and community affordability. “We have one of the biggest landlords in town being the University of Kansas,” a board member said, noting enrollment declines and competition between homeowners, renters and students. Donovan Dillon, an AHAB member who identified himself as a student, said his off-campus living experience informed his interest in the issue: “Being a student... I think that's a relationship so I'm really interested in exploring, in a conversation that doesn't typically happen.”
Several members suggested comparing the KU student-driven study alongside the city’s forthcoming housing study once the city selects a consultant. Rosen confirmed the city’s housing study procurement (RFP) timetable and said the city has not yet selected a consultant. Board members asked staff to try to arrange the KU presentation in time to inform the city’s housing study work.
No formal policy action was taken on the study itself; the board requested a presentation and asked staff to report back about scheduling. Board members also asked staff to provide clarifications on points in the report and to coordinate how the AHAB could use the study’s findings when the city consultant is selected.
The board discussed that the 2024 report points to a shortage of lower-value owner-occupied units that meet demand for low-income households, and that the study includes a more detailed look at student housing than prior local studies. Members emphasized the need for policy recommendations in subsequent work and recommended the AHAB consider the KU study as an input to the city’s forthcoming housing study.
