Flagstaff updates 10-year housing plan, reports progress and 33 strategies for 2025–26

Adrianna Fisher, the Housing Program Manager and Housing Commission liaison, told the Flagstaff Housing Commission on May 20 that the city’s 10-year housing plan has moved from blueprint to implementation and that staff has identified 33 strategies to advance in fiscal year 2025–26.

Fisher said the plan sets a goal to cut Flagstaff’s affordable housing need in half over the next 10 years and seeks to support at least 6,000 moderate-income residents by creating or preserving 7,976 housing units by 2031, with a target that at least 10% of those units be affordable.

The update matters because it translates a council-declared housing emergency and a multi-year community planning process into specific actions and budget requests. Fisher described the plan as the city’s “blueprint” guiding housing programs, funding decisions and partnerships across public, private and nonprofit sectors.

City staff presented results to date: 553 residents have received housing supports such as new Section 8 vouchers, homeless services, eviction prevention and rental assistance; 2,098 housing units have been created or preserved, with 13% designated as affordable. Fisher said 12 of the housing plan’s 58 strategies have been completed, 23 are in progress and 19 are ongoing long-term efforts.

Fisher outlined completed and ongoing work: the Land Availability and Suitability Code Analysis Project (LASCAP) that aims to reduce regional development costs; a full‑time housing navigator hired July 1, 2024, to support residents, landlords and housing authority interactions; and a feasibility analysis of expanding protected classes (the city currently lacks authority to enact some source‑of‑income or age protections under state law). She said staff will revisit protected‑class protections if the law changes.

For fiscal year 2025–26 Fisher said staff selected 33 strategies that include updates to the city’s affordable‑housing incentive policy, code amendments to make minimum densities achievable and to increase maximum allowable densities in some zones, pilot resource protection overlay standards, exploring landlord incentives for renting to voucher holders or tenants with barriers, prioritizing development of city‑owned land for affordable housing and examining community land trusts and public‑private partnerships.

Fisher described the plan as a living document that the city will prioritise based on funding availability, staffing, council and public support, and interdependence of strategies. She said staff will present a similar briefing to City Council on June 10 and that specific items will be advanced through the regular budget and code amendment processes.

Commissioners asked clarifying questions during the presentation about counting permitted units, treatment of the resource protection overlay and next steps for code amendments. Fisher clarified that some units are permitted as affordable but are not counted in the city’s progress totals until additional steps are confirmed and that some strategies are contingent on partnerships and future code amendments.

The presentation was an informational item; no formal commission action was taken. Fisher encouraged commissioners and the public to provide feedback as staff advances the listed strategies through code updates, budget proposals and public outreach.