Karen Kuipers, director of the Tooele County Housing Authority, told the Grantsville City Council on May 7 that countywide shortages of housing affordable to low-income households remain large and that local planning and developer partnerships will be needed to address them.

Kuipers said the county's statewide dashboard (based on 2021 data) showed a shortage of 723 units affordable to households at 30 percent of area median income (AMI) and a countywide deficit of roughly 1,400 units for households earning less than about $58,000. "We have a deficit of about 22 56 units for households that make less than about $58,000," she said, and cautioned the figures on the dashboard are from 2021 and the state was preparing updates.

The presentation explained why vouchers do not automatically solve affordability: Tooele County has 215 Housing Choice (Section 8) vouchers but a much larger shortfall of affordable units. Kuipers said the competition from higher-income renters for limited units limits the ability of voucher holders to "lease up." She also cited a 25 percent increase in HUD fair market rents over five years in the county as a factor pushing many households out of affordability.

Kuipers described several Housing Authority programs and trends: a stock of apartments (155 units), 32 rent-to-own homes, 26 homeowner units built via mutual self-help (sweat-equity) programs and the Section 8 voucher program. She said deed-restricted affordable units are scheduled to expire over coming years, noting 21 units were set to leave restrictions within five years and larger numbers later. "We're going to lose those affordable units that are currently existing as the deed restriction falls off and they get converted to regular market rent," Kuipers said.

Kuipers outlined inducements and partnerships the Housing Authority uses to produce homes, including mutual self-help subdivisions that assemble groups of buyers who build together, and noted recently increased state grants to reduce mortgage or down-payment barriers (she said a program was raising its per-home subsidy to $50,000). She said the county's newly opened Harris Community Village shelter and 66 supportive-housing apartments filled very quickly and currently show wait lists for both shelter beds and the permanent apartments.

Council members asked how many residents of Grantsville occupy county-developed units; Kuipers said the Housing Authority did not routinely track origin/previous residence but offered to research it. She also discussed challenges in prioritizing local residents under federal rules and what can be done at the local planning level to prioritize community members when permissible.

Kuipers urged zoning reforms and a range of housing types. "When we build new homes, even if they're maybe at a higher price so that a young couple that's just starting out can't afford those new homes, people who move into it who can't afford it open up units for other people," she said. She encouraged local officials to examine density rules, accessory dwelling unit policies and other tools that the state and other jurisdictions have used to increase supply.

Kuipers closed by noting the 2020s projected population growth for Utah and Tooele County and urged coordination between the county housing authority and Grantsville's leaders on targeted projects and potential land or water partnerships.

Ending: Kuipers left contact information and data links on the dashboard for follow-up; council members thanked her and asked staff to return with any requests for specific local zoning or partnership actions.