The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to allocate $425,000 for a comprehensive housing market study.
The study, recommended in 2022, seeks to address the best way to increase of supply of affordable housing in the county.
This decision comes as the county grapples with a significant shortfall in affordable housing units, a problem highlighted by a recent study from the Eller College of Management.
The current supply of 12,000 affordable housing units in Pima County falls short of the demand, creating pressure on local authorities to find solutions. However, the path forward is not without contention.
During Tuesday's meeting, the Board of Supervisors exhibited a split in opinion on how to effectively increase the supply of affordable housing.
Despite recognizing the urgent need, Supervisors Adelita Grijalva and Steve Christy voted against the funding.
While Grijalva supported the need for more affordable housing options, she expressed skepticism about the utility of another study.
“I feel like we have a pretty significant need for affordable housing,” Grijalva said. “I don’t know how an additional study telling us that would change either the resources that we have to address it or the work that’s currently being done.”
Deputy County Administrator and Chief Medical Officer Francisco Garcia emphasized that the goal of the study was to analyze how best to distribute affordable housing across the county.
“We all acknowledge that there is insufficient housing,” Garcia said. “The question is, where should that housing be and what kinds of housing. Do we need multifamily housing, do we need workforce housing, do we need low-income housing?”
The $425,000 for the study will be drawn from the county's Regional Affordable Housing Fund, which allocates $5 million annually for such initiatives.
The decision to use a portion of these funds for the study sparked concerns among some board members about the potential impact on other housing projects.
Supervisor Rex Scott questioned whether funding could instead come from the county’s discretionary fund.
However, County Administrator Jan Lesher cautioned against the decision, stating that about $60 million remained in the fund and that the county spent $250 million in discretionary last year.
Supervisors Rex Scott, Sylvia Lee and Matt Heinz voted to approve the study, despite some concerns over the source of the funding.
The comprehensive housing market study, to be conducted by Portland-based Economic Consultants Oregon Ltd., aims to provide detailed data on housing needs across various demographics and locations within the county.
This data, expected to be gathered over the course of a year, will be instrumental in guiding future housing policies and investments.
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Joel Foster is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9 who previously worked as an English teacher in both Boston and the Tucson area. Joel has experience working with web, print and video in the tech, finance, nonprofit and the public sectors. In his off-time, you might catch Joel taking part in Tucson's local comedy scene. Share your story ideas with Joel at joel.foster@kgun9.com , or by connecting on Facebook , Instagram or X .
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