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City staff outline 2025–26 implementation plan for Flagstaff 10‑year housing strategy
Summary
Housing staff presented a prioritized set of strategies for the next fiscal year tied to the city’s 10‑year housing plan, reporting progress on units preserved and residents assisted and identifying incentives, zoning and funding actions under consideration.
City housing staff presented the Flagstaff 10‑Year Housing Plan implementation priorities for fiscal year 2025–26 and summarized progress toward the plan’s goals during a council briefing on June 10.
Adrianna Fisher, housing program manager, said the 10‑year plan — originally adopted Feb. 15, 2022 following a citizen petition and a council declaration of a housing emergency — targets assistance for at least 6,000 low‑ and moderate‑income residents and the creation or preservation of 7,976 housing units by 2031. Fisher reported that, since adoption, 991 residents have received housing support through programs such as down‑payment assistance, Section 8 vouchers and eviction prevention, and that staff count 2,098 housing units created or preserved to date (13% affordable), exceeding the plan’s 10% affordable benchmark so far.
Why it matters: The council’s housing goals drive incentives, land use policy and budget priorities; the implementation plan identifies immediate actions the city will take to preserve and create affordable housing and reduce barriers to production.
Fisher said staff selected 33 strategies for advancement in FY 2025–26, including updates to the city’s incentive policy for affordable housing (IPPA), revisions to the Resource Protection Overlay (RPO) standards to improve density outcomes, prioritizing city‑owned land for affordable development, and exploring landlord incentives for renting to voucher holders. Staff also listed long‑term and ongoing strategies such as community land trusts, acquisition and rehabilitation of existing properties when feasible, rehabilitation programs, and outreach to build public support for housing projects.
Housing director Sarah Darr told council the city received a $500,000 allocation intended as seed money for a land-acquisition fund; staff plan to present options this fall, with finance and legal participation, for an ongoing funding source. Darr said any long‑term funding proposal would come before council through the budget process.
Council members asked for clarification on several items: how the $500,000 would be leveraged, whether middle‑market or workforce housing incentives could be incorporated midstream, and how the city would address rehabilitation program barriers related to federal funding rules such as Davis‑Bacon requirements. Staff replied that the rehabilitation program has been constrained by prevailing‑wage requirements, contractor availability and program scale, and that the housing department would study market and funding options with finance and legal before proposing new long‑term commitments.
Fisher said staff would return in September with the annual implementation plan and continue to refine IPPA, RPO and other zoning tools as the city completes its land availability and suitability analysis. No formal votes were held on the implementation strategies during the briefing.
