ITEM TITLE:
Work Session: Housing Needs Assessment Final Report
SUBMITTED BY: Kate Huber, Community Development Director
FISCAL NOTES:
Expenditure Required: n/a
Unencumbered Balance: n/a
Funding Source: n/a
RECOMMENDATION:
n/a
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
The final 2026 Housing Needs Assessment Report is attached for review by the public and City Council. Also attached is an executive summary document that outlines the key points of the full report. Both are available on the City of Valdez website.
During the work session, the project team from Agnew::Beck Consulting and the Community Development Department will present on the needs assessment process and findings and answer any questions. Following the City Council presentation and discussion, the report will be shared with the public through our various communications methods.
The City of Valdez is actively working to improve housing outcomes for current and future residents. With the adoption of Plan Valdez, the 2021 Comprehensive plan, the city set housing as a top priority for the future health and vitality of the community. Additionally, the Valdez City Council established housing availability as their top priority for 2025. This housing needs assessment provides information that will help refine the city’s housing efforts and future investments.
What is a Housing Needs Assessment?
A housing needs assessment is a data informed process through which a community identifies current and future housing needs, including housing types, affordability, and accessibility. An evaluation of the existing housing inventory, building trends as well as market and economic conditions inform a forecast of the community’s specific housing needs. These assessments help provide baseline data and analysis to inform meaningful investments, policy development, and program implementation to achieve current and future housing goals. While a housing needs assessment is not a planning document, it lays the foundation for future planning efforts.
The findings of this housing needs assessment are used to forecast the number of units needed to accommodate future population growth and address existing pent-up demand. Renovation and preservation of the existing housing inventory is also taken into consideration to develop a more nuanced picture of the overall housing need in Valdez. Additionally, this assessment looks at housing price and accessibility, to highlight the specific needs of households of various income levels and identify the need for housing across a broad spectrum of affordability.
While the housing needs assessment is not a planning document, it does include preliminary recommendations for policy actions that City Council can consider to address our local housing situation. The data also provides useful information for council if they seek to refine our current housing initiatives including the dwelling unit incentive program or property tax relief programs.
Using the assessment the Council and the Housing Subcommittee will continue work on a housing action plan detailing preferred long-term efforts in addition to short term projects in an effort to meet the Council priority to increase housing stock by the fall 2027.
Please see the attached executive summary and full report for more detail.