Mountain West Summit Showcases Regional Solutions to Housing Crisis

On September 26-27, New Mexico housing and rural development advocates joined USBC at a Denver summit hosted by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.

Leaders from Colorado, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Indian Country discussed regional solutions to bringing housing back within reach of millions who have been priced out of the market.

Among the measures discussed was Colorado’s Proposition 123, which promises to fund 10,000 units annually priced to the earnings of teachers, nurses and firefighters; as well as increasing the supply of permanent supportive housing units to transition people from homelessness.

Summit sessions also addressed community land trusts as a means to expand healthcare services, schools, small businesses, youth programming, grocery stores, and other essential services; and innovative projects that promote affordable housing and home and small business financing in Indian Country.

Common to the discussions was the importance of leveraging the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to increase affordable housing and small business reinvestment and finance creative means to address the burgeoning energy, water and climate crisis in the Mountain West.

For more information on the summit, contact USBC at www.unitedsouthbroadway.org