In the aftermath of shootings that took nine lives during an eight-day period in early September, including four in the Gilpin Court public housing community, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney called for action.
“It's clear we need a new model of affordable housing in Richmond," Stoney said during a Sept. 12 news conference. T.K. Somanath, chief executive officer of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, added, “It’s time for us to really provide choices for our residents to live in better neighborhoods, in mixed-income communities.”
On Tuesday, Oct. 31, the mayor and a majority of Richmond City Council members, along with about 150 others who work in the public and private sectors and for philanthropic, nonprofit and faith-based organizations, will meet from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Virginia Union University’s Living and Learning Center to provide input on a draft housing plan for the city, says Laura Lafayette, chief executive officer of the Richmond Association of Realtors. The Affordable Housing & Community Development Summit is not open to the public, but media will be able to attend.
Sent to summit participants last week via email, the draft housing plan includes four goals, the first of which is: “Respectfully reimagine and transform public housing to foster economically integrated communities for the safety and benefit of all residents, neighborhoods and schools.” Strategies toward that goal include a plan to enable public housing residents to transition to future housing choices; hiring additional family-transition coaches to assist with education, workforce development and employment; supporting an increase in housing choice vouchers; ensuring that affordable housing units are integrated throughout new residential developments; and supporting the Richmond Region Transit Vision Plan.
The other goals concern identifying revenue sources to transform public housing communities; preserving and increasing affordable housing options; and adapting governmental structure to support a comprehensive, coordinated approach to affordable housing and community development.
In a message accompanying the draft plan, Lafayette writes that while the ideas and strategies may seem familiar to those who have worked on housing issues, “What we hope is different and new is the outcome of this summit. If we are serious about transformation, then we will need unprecedented resolve to secure the funds necessary and stay the course.”