October 5, 2007
Board Adopts Workforce Housing Comprehensive Plan Amendment
New Policy Implements Major Recommendations of the High-Rise Affordability Panel

On Monday, September 24, 2007, the Board of Supervisors adopted amendments to the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan, creating a new Workforce Housing Program.  These amendments effectively implement, as policy, the major recommendations of the Board-appointed High-rise Affordability Panel.  This groundbreaking action by the Board is expected to significantly increase the amount of housing produced that is affordable to a range of moderate-income workers in Fairfax County. 

Among the critical elements of the Comprehensive Plan amendments are:

1. In the “Glossary”:

1. Expands the definition of “Affordable Housing” to include “Workforce Housing,”  to recognize that persons living in units produced under the Affordable Dwelling Unit (ADU) program and other Fairfax County housing programs represent a critical segment of Fairfax County’s workforce;
2. Adds a definition of “Workforce Housing” to include rental and for-sale housing affordable at up to 120 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), and states that the intent of the Workforce Housing initiative is to encourage affordable housing in Fairfax County’s Mixed-Use Centers (such as Tyson’s Corner).  The definition also notes that additional development density or intensity will be made available in return for the provision of Workforce Housing.

2. Under the Housing Section of the “Countywide Objectives and Policies”:

1. Adds a policy that ADUs and Workforce Housing Units shall constitute a minimum of 12 percent of all residential units.
2. States that Workforce Housing should be provided in three tiers, affordable to households with incomes up to 80, 100 and 120 percent of AMI in all for-sale units and in rental units in concrete construction, and affordable to incomes up to 80 and 100 percent of AMI in rental units in wood construction.
3. Adds an appendix to the Housing Section detailing guidelines for the provision of Workforce Housing, including the minimum 12 percent Affordable/Workforce Housing expectation, incomes to be served, bonus units, and unit sizes, among other things.

The High-rise Affordability Panel, chaired by FCRHA Commissioner Lee Rau (Hunter Mill District), was appointed by the Board to develop policies to promote the development of new affordable housing in projects using high-rise construction.  The Panel worked for nearly two years to develop its recommendations, which included the 12 percent affordable/workforce housing expectation, bonus density, and the income range implemented by the Board’s action.  The Panel also recommended that the County, on a separate track, initiate a process to allow, under certain circumstances, housing as a permitted use in commercial, industrial and mixed-use districts.  This recommendation is currently under consideration by staff.