by Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
The Fredericksburg Regional Housing Assembly has identified the following three top priorities for addressing the area housing crisis:
- Use Comprehensive Plan updates to explore density options and expand housing education efforts.
- Incubate a new entity with powers similar to a housing authority.
- Increase housing rehab and critical repair assistance programs.
The Housing Assembly is an advisory group made up of multiple stakeholders—including representatives from the Rappahannock Area Health District, Central Virginia Housing Coalition, the Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors, the Rappahannock United Way, local building companies, and other nonprofits—and facilitated by the George Washington Regional Commission.
The GWRC has identified affordable housing as one of the region’s most pressing concerns. In October, the Assembly hosted a Regional Housing Summit, which included a brainstorming session during which attendees were asked to identify possible next steps for addressing housing attainability.
In the months since the Summit, the Assembly has been sifting through the information gathered during the brainstorming session and this week released a report that included the recommended top three priorities.
“The RHA will develop detailed Action Plans for each step to be monitored and evaluated by the RHA Executive Committee,” the report states. “Progress will be displayed on the RHA page of the GWRC website.”
The Assembly meets on the second Wednesday of each month at 1 p.m. at the GWRC headquarters, 406 Princess Anne Street. Members of the public can also participate via Zoom.
