Avery-Stoss WILKES-BARRE — Jill Avery-Stoss, chief operating officer at The Institute, this week said The Institute’s Housing Task Force has produced a needs assessment in response to the changing housing landscape in Luzerne County.
According to Avery-Stoss, rising costs and a growing population are straining the existing housing stock, which is also quite dated. In addition to a market analysis, which explores home values in municipalities where most sales are concentrated, the research addresses issues such as tenure, vacancies and zoning.
“Tenure refers to owner occupancy and renter occupancy,” said Avery-Stoss. “Projections for each housing type indicated that — at minimum — 288 more owner-occupied units will be in demand by 2027. The maximum projection exceeded 1,000 new units. At least 756 more rental units will be needed, and that demand may grow exponentially.”
Vacancy rates vary by type of housing. Avery-Stoss said detached single-family housing is far less likely than attached and other units to be vacant, comprising 67.6% of occupied housing but only 44.6% of vacant housing. Luzerne County’s percentage of abandoned properties is significantly higher than that of the state, at 52.7% compared to 43.55%.
“When we looked at the age of the county’s housing stock, we identified an urban-rural divide,” added Avery-Stoss. “Homes in the four cities in the county tend to be older than homes in other areas. The cities’ percentages of homes built before 1960 range from 63.9% to 67.8%, while countywide homes built before 1960 make up only 26.6%. The county’s smaller and most rural communities have the lowest percentages of old homes.”
Zoning and planning codes also add complexity to the housing situation. Of the counties’ 76 municipalities, 56 have passed their own zoning ordinances, leaving the remaining 20 under the county’s ordinance. This means the county has 57 zoning ordinances and systems. Each of those codes has different districts and allowed uses in each district, which creates confusion and may deter developers. For this reason, zoning reform could prove beneficial.
One possible solution is for local municipalities to rescind their ordinances and return to the county ordinance to reduce the number of ordinances. Elected officials in Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties could also form a Regional Planning Commission (RPC). This RPC could standardize zoning and land use across the region. Aside from reducing the number of ordinances, standardization could be beneficial. Currently, designations for the districts differ greatly.
Adaptive reuse is another possible solution. Due to the county’s significant industrial past, there are large numbers of vacant factories, warehouses, and other facilities. Several communities have had success converting buildings like these into residential or mixed-use spaces that can provide housing while promoting business development.
“Funding for these alternative housing projects to succeed could be generated by entities such as public banks and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs),” stated Avery-Stoss. “They function like investment funds, able to offer loans and other financial products and services but operate as nonprofits serving specific missions. As such, they can finance projects that might not have the revenue potential desired by private organizations.”
Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act supported the Luzerne County Housing Study.
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