Dear AHS Friends and Supporters,

Thank you for joining us in celebrating AHS' 20th Anniversary last week. It was a wonderful occasion to reflect on our achievements in affordable housing advocacy and to recognize our supporters. We are excited to continue our mission and collaborate with you in new and innovative ways for the next 20 years (and more!) to co-create an #ArlingtonforEveryone.

Your support and engagement are vital to sustain our advocacy for affordable housing in Arlington. Whether its today--Giving Tuesday--tomorrow, or any day thereafter, your financial contribution is essential to fund our work. I am grateful that AHS is among the causes you care about and appreciate if you choose to donate to us. 

As always, thank you for all you do to further the impact of our work.

With Gratitude,

Last week, AHS celebrated 20 years of affordable housing with dual events; the Thomas P. Leckey Forum and Ellen M. Bozman Affordable Housing Awards. 
 
The 2023 Thomas P. Leckey Forum featured Jenee Gaynor, Director of Shared Equity Housing at NeighborWorks America; Amelie Rives, CEO of Virginia Statewide Community Land Trust; and Michael Spotts, Director of Real Estate Development at Habitat for Humanity Washington, DC and Northern Virginia. 

The robust conversation focused on the use of Community Land Trusts to increase homeownership, build generational wealth and create permanent affordable housing. The conversation also covered the role of government, financial institutions, and other stakeholders in the space.  Missed the discussion and want to catch the recap?  You can revisit the discussion on our YouTube channel by going here.
 

 

The Ellen M. Bozman Affordable Housing Awards took place immediately afterwards, where the "dynamic-duo" of affordable housing, Katie Cristol, former Arlington County Board member and chair, and Christian Dorsey, current Arlington County Board chair, received well-deserved recognition for their unwavering support and advocacy of affordable housing. 

Want to relive more of the action?  Visit our social media pages to see more pictures!  Find us on Facebook , Twitter/X and Instagram.

It's the Tuesday after Thanksgiving and that means its Giving Tuesday!  Please consider a donation to AHS, where every dollar you donate is dedicated to advocating for more affordable housing in our community. 

Your support helps brings us closer to our vision of a plentiful supply of quality affordable housing that meets the needs of a growing and diverse Arlington. 
 

At its November meeting, the County Board passed the Langston Boulevard Area Plan, which will help transform the predominantly car-oriented, long racially and economically segregated, 4.5-mile-long corridor, into a green, mixed-use main street that offers affordable housing, environmental resiliency, equity, and economic sustainability.

While the current Plan envisions achieving only 2,000 Committed Affordable (CAF) units in the next 15 years, the Board included Plan language that affirms the original goal of 2,500 CAFs by 2040. The Plan also projects an increase in the overall housing supply to more than 20,000 units by 2075, of which over 3,500 will be affordable units.

In an effort to advance a review of the East Falls Church metro area, the Board committed to deeper conversations with both WMATA and VDOT, the other property owners on the Metro site.  AHS reiterated the value of an immediate review of the EFC Area Plan, which would likely yield hundreds of additional CAF units in that wester-most section of the Langston Blvd corridor.

AHS also continues to advocate for a deeper dive into additional financial and land use tools to bring to bear to Arlington's quest to esnure that 17.7% of all housing units are available at affordable levels, especially deeply affordable levels.

As we announced last week at our 20th anniversary celebration, AHS and Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance (NVAHA), two organizations with a common vision and mission of affordable housing, have signed a letter of intent to unify into one entity starting from January 1, 2024.

The combined entity will maintain the local Arlington voice for advocacy, deepen outreach, amplify our impact in the region, and strengthen our presence as the most trusted voice on affordable housing issues.

Look to our social media platforms and update emails over the coming weeks for more information on how you can continue to support the work we do in Arlington and throughout Northern Virginia. 

The County reported $26M in available discretionary funds from the FY2023 budget year.  Among other allocations, the County Board voted to utilize $15M toward paying down its $150M loan which aided in the purchase of the Barcroft Apartments in 2021.  This payment will help the County save nearly $1M in annual debt service payments on the Barcroft loan, which is paid out of the Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF).

The November 16 EHO lawsuit hearing established a trial date of July 8, 2024. However, the County Attorney requested the opportunity to appeal the validity of the case itself, and Judge David Schell set January 11, 2024 to hear that motion. If the motion succeeds, the County would take its case to the VA State Court of Appeals.

 

We are excited to announce that our newly refreshed Alliance for Housing Solutions website is now live! Located at the same domain, https://www.allianceforhousingsolutions.org , the refreshed AHS website has a new sleeker look that makes it easier for you to navigate and find the information you need to stay informed and active as a strong advocate for affordable housing.
 
Our website features updated content, resources, events, and news about our work and impact in the community. You can also learn more about our programs, partners, and supporters, and how you can get involved with us. We hope you enjoy our refreshed website and we look forward to hearing from you.

The Alliance for Housing Solutions is a small nonprofit with a big voice. By joining us as a volunteer you can help advance solutions designed to increase the supply of safe, affordable housing for a diverse and sustainable community. There are many ways to assist: photography, social media, fundraising, and event support are just a few.

To express interest in volunteering, you may access our volunteer form here and an AHS volunteer coordinator will follow up with you.

Become a member of the Alliance for Housing Solutions community on the platform Mobilize.io to learn, share ideas, and be part of policy discussions. We currently offer the following groups:
 

Increasing the supply of affordable housing through education, policy, advocacy, and innovation.