County planning staff unveils Chautauqua County housing market assessment, outlines 80+ action items

Rebecca Wurster, planning coordinator for the Chautauqua County Department of Planning and Development and for the Partnership for Economic Growth, presented the county's Chautauqua County Housing Market Assessment and Development Strategy at a recent planning meeting.

Wurster said the study, prepared with consultant MRB Group, combines demographic data, a needs assessment and stakeholder interviews to recommend more than 80 action items and four goal areas: housing diversity and quality; housing for special populations; reducing household cost burden; and land-management tools and resources.

The presentation summarized local trends Wurster said are driving the strategy. She cited Jamestown's population and household projections (a small projected decline in both), a median household income figure for Jamestown of $33,626 and a stated projection of about a 10% increase by 2027 (slide figure cited by Wurster). Wurster also highlighted poverty and special-population measures: she said Jamestown's poverty rate is about 24 percent compared with roughly 13 percent for New York State and 17 percent for Chautauqua County, that households with disabilities account for nearly one-third of Jamestown households, and that 31.1 percent of Jamestown residents are age 55 or older.

Wurster described housing-stock and market conditions the report identified: Jamestown has about 14,430 housing…