The Polk County Housing Trust Fund (PCHTF) has announced author Shane Phillips as its featured speaker for the 2022 Affordable Housing Week Symposium. Phillips' book, The Affordable City, Strategies for Putting Housing Within Reach (and Keeping it There), says meeting today's housing need requires action to both provide more housing and also help people and families remain stable in their homes.
“We think the book provides a range of practical policy ideas that will help our audience think really big about what’s possible in providing everybody in Greater Des Moines the housing choices they need. It will take multiple strategies to provide those choices, and this will be a great springboard for that discussion,” said Eric Burmeister, the Polk County Housing Trust Fund’s executive director.
In The Affordable City, Phillips provides concise summaries of a multitude of housing policy ideas arranged around what he calls the "Three S's" of Supply, Stability and Subsidy. PCHTF will follow Phillips' talk with panel presentations on each topic featuring discussion of zoning and land use policies, tenant protections, preservation of existing housing, new public investment in housing, and more.
Burmeister says the wide-ranging discussion allows PCHTF to highlight the many partners helping meet Greater Des Moines’ housing need while also encouraging creativity about the region’s approach.
PCHTF plans to hold its symposium at the Iowa Events Center the morning of April 7 beginning at 8:00 am. The event is sponsored by Capital Crossroads and OpportUNITY, a program of the United Way of Central Iowa. While there is no charge to attend and the public is welcome, advance registration is requested at https://ahw22.eventbrite.com.