The Human Services Chamber’s Annual Meeting on February 12th featured an engaging panel conversation about housing issues in our community and some of the creative approaches that are underway to deal with displacement and the shortage of affordable housing. Kathy Schwab of Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) presented their 100% Housing initiative, which seeks to match the 40,000 vacant housing units in Hamilton County with the 40,000-unit deficit in affordable units. LISC has worked over the past year to inventory over 10,000 of those vacant properties and has convened a wide variety of stakeholders to develop a comprehensive housing strategy. Jeniece Jones of Housing Opportunities Made Equal (HOME) spoke about the work HOME is doing to address housing discrimination and prevent evictions in our community. A multi-faceted approach will be needed to tackle the affordable housing deficit. Thank you to our moderator, Harold Brown of Greater Cincinnati Foundation, for guiding this rich and timely discussion. You can read more about the discussion and plans to develop a comprehensive housing strategy here.
