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004 <br /> COMPREHENSIVE HOUSING AFFORDABILITY STRATEGY FOR ORANGE COUNTY <br /> Including the Towns of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and Hillsborough <br /> INTRODUCTION <br /> The affordable housing needs of Orange County have been studied <br /> from many points of view and reported in these documents: Orange <br /> County Low and Moderate Income Housing Task Force Report <br /> (September, 1987 ) , Public Private Partnership Affordable Housing <br /> Task Force (May, 1989) , Chapel Hill Comprehensive Plan (June, <br /> 1989) , and Carrboro Housing Report (May, 1990) . Additionally, the <br /> Public Private Partnership has sponsored two Housing Summits <br /> entitled "Why Housing Costs So Much" on October 29, 1992 and May 5, <br /> 1993 to challenge the community to participate in helping solve <br /> Orange County' s affordable housing needs. These reports as well as <br /> summit proceedings serve as the basis for this Comprehensive <br /> Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) . <br /> The important issues in Orange County have not changed. The high <br /> cost of homeownership has left many families out of the housing <br /> market or sent them to surrounding counties to buy homes and <br /> commute into Orange County for work. The rental market, inflated <br /> by the ability of UNC-CH students able to pay higher rents, is <br /> beyond the means of families with incomes below 50% of the area <br /> median. For families in need of three or more bedrooms, very <br /> little housing stock exists. The number of women and children <br /> staying at the homeless shelter continues to increase dramatically, <br /> and transition from the shelter into permanent housing in Orange <br /> County is nearly impossible since no transitional housing exists. <br /> Housing for special interest groups such as the elderly, persons <br /> that are developmentally disabled, and persons with alcohol or drug <br /> addiction, is limited in Orange County. <br /> In this CHAS, staff from Orange County, Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and <br /> Hillsborough have identified the specific needs of the county and <br /> prioritized them based on severity of need and availability of <br /> resources to address the need. Section I, Community Profile, is a <br /> description of the housing needs and market in Orange County. <br /> Section II, is the Five- Year Strategy to address these needs. <br /> Section III is the Annual Plan which describes actions to be taken <br /> during the Federal fiscal year, October 1, 1993 through September <br /> 30, 1994 . <br /> SUMMARY OF CHAS DEVELOPMENT AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION PROCESS <br /> Development of this county-wide CHAS was undertaken by a staff <br /> working group that included a representative from each <br /> participating jurisdiction. This working group began work on a <br /> draft CHAS in early June, 1993. The CHAS was first announced to <br /> the public in the Chapel Hill Herald on Friday, August 27, 1993, <br /> and again on Sunday, September 5, 1993. The advertisement briefly <br /> explained the CHAS and listed the location, dates, and times of the <br /> public hearings for all four jurisdictions. In addition to the <br />