Report: Kentucky’s housing challenges could impact future economic development

A new report from the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Policy & Research suggests that housing challenges could intensify as more economic development projects come to the Commonwealth – and its author says that state and community leaders should address those challenges now.

The research center’s Building a Foundation for Growth report examines Kentucky’s current housing landscape and looks at the Commonwealth’s future residential needs through the lens of economic development.

Charles Aull, the Kentucky Chamber research center’s executive director, wrote the report. He said the business advocacy organization has heard growing concerns about housing from both employers and community leaders. He said the state Chamber of Commerce’s goal is to continue building on Kentucky’s recent economic growth, and he wanted to study how housing factors into that.

“We want more jobs, we want more opportunity. Part of that, though, is going to be making sure that we can supply the housing that is needed to accommodate those types of announcements and that type of growth,” he said.

According to the report, about two-thirds of community leaders surveyed said they think housing challenges are holding back economic growth and opportunity in their areas.

A shortage of housing stock in many Kentucky communities is of major concern when it comes to potential economic development. Nearly 90% of leaders surveyed said they didn’t think their areas could meet the housing demand of a hypothetical development bringing 1,000 jobs to their part of the state.

Data released earlier this year by the Kentucky Housing Corporation indicates that the Commonwealth has an existing housing supply gap of over 200,000 units. The Kentucky Chamber’s research suggests that just under 12% of the state’s housing units were built in 2010 or later. To keep up with population growth, the Commonwealth would need to build nearly 14,000 units every year until 2050 to hit the low end of the study’s estimated gap.

Chris Wooldridge is the director of Murray State University’s Center for Economic and Entrepreneurial Development. He said in recent years, companies have been taking closer looks at whether communities have enough housing to accommodate the workforce that would come along with that development.

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“If we don’t have housing stock, then that might be a deterrent in a company locating in a community,” Wooldrigde said. “[If] they can’t bring in their management team, or if they need to draw in other employees to live in that community, if that housing is not available, that’s not going to happen.”

The report also outlines several policy suggestions on how to tackle the supply shortage. One of those solutions was to create a state committee to discuss housing on a broader level. Earlier this year, the state legislature established a task force – which met for the first time last month and will continue to meet over the next several months – to help tackle Kentucky’s housing shortage.

Aull said officials also need to have conversations about how to build up Kentucky’s home building workforce, which still hasn’t recovered from the 2007-2008 financial crisis. The researcher said that that industry will need to continue to add more people to keep up with Kentucky’s housing demand.

Another topic the report’s author said state and local policymakers can consider is revamping land use and zoning laws to allow for more lower and middle income-friendly housing – such as duplexes and townhomes – in their communities.

“I think if we take action now, we can make sure that we have the housing we need to accommodate future growth,” Aull said. “That will allow us to achieve that larger goal of sustainable economic and workforce growth in Kentucky.”

Aull added that residents should also be open to new types of residential developments in their communities, and embrace what he calls a pro-housing mindset.

This is republished with permission from WKMS. Read the original.