Raleigh Affordable Housing Location Policy

The Affordable Housing Location Policy is a City of Raleigh affordable housing policy that determines where new subsidized multi-family rental housing may be located in Raleigh. The policy has been in effect since 2015 and applies to developments receiving City funding or requiring City Council approval and is intended to expand housing choices in higher income neighborhoods while preventing the concentration of poverty and subsidized housing in the same neighborhoods.

Policy Details

The policy applies to newly constructed subsidized multi-family rental housing developments of more than 24 units that are funded by the City of Raleigh or require City Council approval. The policy does not apply to rehabilitation projects, housing for elderly or disabled populations, or one-for-one replacement of affordable rental units lost to demolition or conversion, provided replacement units serve the same market area or neighborhood and receive Council approval.

Location restrictions

Under the policy, new subsidized multi-family rental housing is generally prohibited in census tracts that meet one or more of the following conditions:

• minority population of 50 percent or greater;
• households in poverty comprising 30 percent or greater of households; or
• subsidized rental housing accounting for 8 percent or more of the total rental housing stock, excluding elderly and disabled housing.

Allowed exceptions

Projects located in restricted census tracts may proceed if they qualify for one or more exceptions, including:

• location within one-half mile of a planned rail station or Bus Rapid Transit corridor;
• location within one-half mile of a transit stop with service at 15-minute headways or better;
• location within the Downtown Raleigh Comprehensive Plan boundary; or
• inclusion in a City-approved, mixed-income neighborhood revitalization plan.

Waiver authority and administration

City Council may grant waivers to the policy on a case-by-case basis. Developers seeking a waiver must submit a written request to the Housing and Neighborhoods Department, which evaluates the request and provides a recommendation to Council. Maps identifying census tracts with concentrations of poverty, minority population, and subsidized rental housing are updated periodically in coordination with Comprehensive Plan updates.

History

During multiple City Council meetings in early 2015, Council members and City staff acknowledged that the City of Raleigh did not have a formal policy governing the geographic placement of subsidized affordable housing. Staff confirmed that neither the City’s Consolidated Plan nor existing housing policies provided clear guidance on where affordable housing should or should not be located, and that the City was relying on an outdated Scattered Site Policy originally adopted decades earlier.

Council discussion during this period focused on concerns about approving rezonings and housing investments without a consistent framework to address concentration of subsidized housing, minority populations, and poverty. Several Council members stated that affordable housing decisions should not proceed in the absence of a clearly articulated location policy.

At a June 16, 2015 City Council work session, staff from the Housing and Neighborhoods Department presented a draft Affordable Housing Location Policy intended to replace the existing Scattered Site Policy.

Staff described the draft policy as applying to newly constructed, subsidized multi-family rental developments with more than 24 units. The policy did not apply to rehabilitation projects, housing for elderly or disabled populations, or one-for-one replacement of existing affordable housing units, subject to Council approval.

The draft policy introduced quantitative thresholds to define areas of concentration, including:

• Census tracts where more than 8 percent of rental units (excluding elderly and disabled housing) were subsidized
• Census tracts with minority populations exceeding 50 percent
• Census tracts where more than 30 percent of households lived below the federal poverty level

Under the draft policy, new subsidized multi-family housing was generally discouraged in census tracts exceeding these thresholds unless the project qualified for a defined exception.

Exceptions and waiver process

The draft policy identified specific circumstances under which affordable housing could be supported in otherwise restricted areas. These included projects located within one-half mile of planned rail or Bus Rapid Transit corridors, projects within the Downtown Element of the Comprehensive Plan, and projects implementing City-approved mixed-income neighborhood revitalization plans.

The policy also established a waiver process allowing City Council to approve exceptions on a case-by-case basis following staff review and recommendation.

July–August 2015 – Committee review and revisions

The Budget and Economic Development Committee reviewed the draft Affordable Housing Location Policy in summer 2015. Committee members requested revisions to ensure consistency with the City’s adopted transit plans and the Unified Development Ordinance. After revisions, the committee voted unanimously to recommend adoption of the policy.

September 2015 – Policy adopted by City Council

On September 1, 2015, City Council formally adopted the Affordable Housing Location Policy, replacing the prior Scattered Site Policy. The policy was adopted on an 8–0 vote.