Highland Park holds public hearing on 2025 affordable housing plan; council urged to adopt state-required submission

The Highland Park City Council held a public hearing Monday on the city’s 2025 Affordable Housing Plan, a submission required by the Illinois Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act that staff said will be sent to the Illinois Housing Development Authority for review.

Director of Community Development Joel Fontaine summarized the plan and told the council the city must submit a plan because its percentage of housing that meets the state’s affordability calculation is below the 10% threshold. "The goal for complying with the state act is to require a minimum of 10% affordable within the jurisdictions described in subsection b of section 20 of the act," Fontaine said. He described the report as largely a description of existing programs, including Highland Park’s inclusionary ordinance and scattered-site program, and not a set of new policy actions.

The plan documents existing programs and incentives, Fontaine said, noting the city’s inclusionary housing code requires roughly 15–16% of units in many new developments to be affordable and that those inclusionary units carry permanent affordability covenants. Housing Commission members voted 6–0 to recommend approval of the 2025 plan to the council, Fontaine added.

Public commenters at the hearing urged the council to pursue stronger results. David Goldman, representing the Highland Park Property Owners Association, said the city has seen its share of affordable housing “drop as percentage stock from approximately 9% in 2018 to around 6% or a little more today,” and urged policies to increase overall residential density and affordable unit production. Amy Kaufman, vice president of Community Partners for Affordable Housing, said Highland Park’s inclusionary program has produced permanently affordable units and that the city’s program has been a model for other communities.

Council members pressed staff for specifics. Councilmember Tapia asked how the city currently measures against the 10% goal; Fontaine answered that the city’s percentage has fallen to about 6.3–6.7% and that market-rate affordability can fluctuate quickly with mortgage rates and other economic conditions. Councilmember Ross asked about the housing trust fund balance; Fontaine (staff) said the trust fund was “over $1,500,000” and that staff would provide a precise number when the next budget is finalized.

Fontaine emphasized the submission is a compliance measure and does not bind the council from future policy changes: "If there are any policy changes that happen in the intervening 5 years, the council doesn't restrict you in any way on any of those considerations. And when they happen, we'll just update to the state." Council closed the public hearing by motion (motion by Councilmember Littler, second by Councilmember Tapia). The record shows the hearing was closed; the transcript does not record a final roll-call vote adopting the plan during this meeting.

Why it matters: the state requires communities under the Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act to adopt and submit plans demonstrating how they will pursue 10% affordable housing; the city’s submission documents programs already in place but also frames the issue for future local policy debate.

Next steps: staff said they would submit the plan to IHDA and be available for follow-up council discussion if the council chooses to pursue substantive policy changes beyond the plan submission.