Listening Tour Wrap Up
This is the Housing Wrap Up Report. Each report includes the following sections:
- “What we heard” - A summary of the key themes heard during the tour and a comprehensive list of feedback received.
- “What we are doing” - A summary of the work the City is currently doing to address the feedback that was shared.
- “What we are planning to do” - This section highlights specific goals and strategies to be implemented in 2024 as part of our Strategic Doing Framework. These are short-term priorities that we feel we can meaningfully address this year.
- “How to get involved” - This section showcases various ways you can learn more about specific topics, continue shaping policy, and get involved to stay engaged in all that is happening in the city.
To see the other areas of feedback we received, please return to the Wrap-Up homepage.
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What we heard
During the Listening Tour, we heard feedback from you on housing issues such as:
- Encouraging development of a variety of housing choices.
- Prioritizing infill projects that make good use of existing infrastructure.
- Incentivizing senior housing for older residents and “missing middle” housing.
What we are doing
Collaborating with the newly formed Pikes Peak Housing Network
- The Pikes Peak Housing Network unites an ongoing broad-based coalition of partners from businesses, nonprofits, real estate, and government to promote enduring solutions to housing needs across all income levels
- We are working to create a hub for information and advocacy on housing issues in our region in partnership with the Pikes Peak Housing Network.
Opting into Proposition 123
- Proposition 123 is a voter-approved initiative that is making millions of dollars in new resources available to build affordable housing. The City of Colorado Springs was the first big city in Colorado to opt-in to these funds for affordable housing.
Making city land available to showcase innovative construction techniques
- The City is closely tracking innovations in residential construction, including 3D concrete printing, panelized and modular construction, and pre-fabricated homes ready to ship. By the end of Q2 2024, the City will make available two residential lots to showcase one or more innovative construction techniques. This is one of the ways the City is helping facilitate innovative solutions to housing affordability.
Manage and allocate federal entitlement programs and issue tax-exempt bonds
- The City continues to manage and allocate U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development entitlement funds to support public-private partnerships that build and preserve affordable housing, strengthen neighborhood facilities infrastructure, and provide direct services to the City’s most vulnerable residents. In 2023 alone, we have managed and allocated $3.7 million in federal funds to support housing here locally.
- The City issues tax-exempt bonds authorized by the Internal Revenue Service to finance the development of multi-family affordable housing. In 2023, the City made available $37,905,000 in tax-exempt bonds to finance the development of 319 apartments.
"As housing and rent prices have increased, incomes have not kept pace, leaving a dangerous gap that makes it difficult for folks to find housing they can afford. We are talking about nurses, teachers and fire fighters working to support their families and serve our community. That is why in 2023, the City used federal funds and tax-exempt bonds to pledge financial support to over 480 affordable housing units, with a significant number of those units aimed at providing affordable housing for seniors."
-Steve Posey, Chief Housing Officer
What we are planning to do
Maximize and leverage regional partnerships to improve housing affordability.
- Partner with the Pikes Peak Housing Network and other regional stakeholders to establish attainable housing goals.
- Advocate for construction defect legislation reform by joining forces with legislators, advocates, and cities from across the state.
- Engage with for-profit and nonprofit developers to maximize access to Proposition 123 funds.
- Support nonprofit efforts to expand housing opportunities for individuals and families experiencing homelessness in our community.
Pursue innovative housing solutions.
- Showcase innovative building technologies, such as 3D printing or panelized construction.
- Adopt program guidelines to encourage and incentivize the development of accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
Stimulate the removal of barriers for affordable and attainable housing development.
- Partner with City Council to expand incentives and rebates to include missing-middle housing and single-family homeownership, targeting households up to 120% area median income (AMI).
- Explore incentive-based programs to include entry level and workforce housing in mixed income developments and newly annexed land.
Get involved with Housing
Sign up for the Housing and Community Vitality newsletter
- Subscribe to updates from the Housing and Community Vitality department.
Learn how affordable housing is impacting residents here in Colorado Springs
- The City of Colorado Springs Housing & Community Vitality Department partners with local nonprofits by investing our federal entitlement grant funds to help create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all people in Colorado Springs. These stories highlight residents whose lives were changed thanks to those investments.
Become a housing advocate
- There are many ways to advocate for housing here in Colorado Springs - from having conversations with friends, colleagues, to advocating for legislation that can make a difference.
Partner with Housing and Community Vitality
- If you are a nonprofit housing developer, for-profit housing developer, or a Community Housing Development Organization, the City offers support and assistance.