RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy (VICPP) Director of Faith Organizing Sheila Herlihy Hennessee warned at a Tuesday morning press conference that “there is an affordable housing crisis throughout Virginia.”
VICPP and advocates met in the Senate Briefing Room at the Virginia General Assembly to discuss the bipartisan House Bill 2153 and its Senate companion, also known as the Faith and Housing Bill.
Faith communities in Virginia own more than 74,000 acres of land across 22,000 parcels, according to a press release. Many want to use that land to support their financial needs and help their neighbors.
If passed, the bill would enable localities to streamline the process for congregations and other tax-exempt non-profits to use their land to build affordable housing.
“With a shortage of 200,000 plus units and impacting hundreds of thousands of families, there is also a crisis within many faith communities with declining membership and exacerbated financial hardship," Hennessee explained. "These factors have led congregations around Virginia to consider how their property can be used in a mission-oriented way to address the affordable housing crisis."
The non-partisan lobbying group released a resource book titled “Virginia Congregations Building Affordable Housing: A Match Made in Heaven.” The book aims to serve as a resource guide for faith communities, legislators, and advocates working on the crisis.
They noted 45 percent of renters in Virginia pay more than half of their income for housing.
Richmond Democrats Sen. Gazala Hashmi (D-15) and Del. Betsy Carr (D-69) are the legislation’s chief patrons.
“For too long, we've seen faith-based organizations and houses of worship sit on vacant properties that could be repurposed to address our housing crisis," Hashmi said at the press conference. "This legislation empowers these institutions to use their assets to create affordable housing solutions while preserving the character of their communities by tapping into the resources and the support that these trusted community leaders have we are creating new pathways for affordable homes and revitalizing neighborhoods that need it the most."
Hennessee admitted funding and zoning challenges are the biggest roadblocks for faith communities who have tried to add affordable housing in the past.
The Tabernacle Baptist Church in Petersburg and its Clairborne Square project, which opened in August 2011, is a success story.
“Restoration of Petersburg and the Better Housing Coalition applied for money through the Department of Housing and Urban Development to underwrite all the infrastructure (streets, lighting, sewer, sidewalks, etc.) that funding was incredibly helpful. Petersburg would not have been able to support the project in that way, because the city didn’t have money for it,” the resource book read.
While the bill does have support from both sides of the aisle, its future is uncertain.
The Senate version of the bill has been assigned to the Committee on General Laws.
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