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Council introduces revised Inclusionary Housing Ordinance raising city’s baseline requirements
Summary
The council introduced a rewritten Inclusionary Housing Ordinance that would increase the baseline affordable share for new private developments and raise in‑lieu fees; the ordinance was introduced on a recorded vote and will return for action.
The Evanston City Council introduced a revised Inclusionary Housing Ordinance on Jan. 27 that changes how the city sets affordable‑housing requirements for new development and updates the in‑lieu fee structure the city charges when developers do not provide on‑site units.
The draft ordinance increases the baseline requirement on privately financed projects to 15% of units (staff recommended a city‑wide review and annual reporting to the Housing and Community Development Committee), raises the equivalent in‑lieu fees to better reflect lost revenue and construction costs, and changes the way unit equivalents are calculated so the ordinance more closely matches current market building patterns.
Ori Pachter, senior housing planner, explained staff’s approach and said the revised ordinance replaces an older calculation that often produced lower effective on‑site shares. Pachter said the new formula weights bedroom size and unit mix and produces a higher effective affordable yield under current market conditions.
Council Member Ravel, who introduced the ordinance, said the item implements council direction to increase minimum inclusionary requirements and to modernize the program. In public comment, housing advocates urged higher set‑asides and more on‑site units; housing providers and some building owners warned the city not to set requirements that make development unfeasible without subsidies.
Council voted to introduce the ordinance by recorded vote; the item will return for action at a future council meeting and staff said HCDC will continue to refine details and report back to the council. Staff also said the revised fees produce a stronger disincentive to pay in lieu rather than provide on‑site units: in sample scenarios, a large project’s in‑lieu payment could total several million dollars if the developer provided no units on‑site.
Staff recommended annual reporting to the Housing and Community Development Committee so council can adjust the percentage and fee schedule over time if market conditions change.
