housing element

Maryland’s Affordable Housing Resource Database: A Brief Users’ Guide

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Resources and Tools

by Sarah Lipkin Sularz, Regional Planner and Kristen E. Humphrey, MLA, Local Assistance and Training Planner

On June 16, 2020, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) published a webpage for our new Housing Element Models and Guidelines (M&G), developed in response to House Bill 1045 (HB 1045 [2019]) to support local governments in planning affordable housing with their jurisdictions. 

In every region of Maryland there is a great need for additional affordable housing and communities from across the state have sought out funding sources and assistance for new and proposed housing of all kinds and for every type of household.

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Housing Planning is Both a Process and a Practice

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Resources and Tools

By Joe Griffiths, AICP, Local Assistance and Training Manager

While the requirement to include a housing element in all new and updated comprehensive plans in Maryland may have only become effective on June 1, 2020, many planning methods and practices for implementing affordable housing are well established.

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Self-assessments Help with Planning for Housing

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Resources and Tools 

by Joseph Griffiths, AICP, Local Assistance and Training Manager

The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) believes that addressing affordable housing begins with earnest local dialogue and focused visioning.  Nationally developed data, state resources, and comparable best practices and examples are key inputs to a housing needs assessment and action plan, but planning for the housing needs of existing and future residents also calls for internal reflection involving a wide range of stakeholders. 

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Registration Now Open!

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Attend the Planning Directors’ Roundtable Videoconference, September 24, 2020

Please join the Maryland Department of Planning’s fall Planning Directors Roundtable videoconference on September 24 from 10:00 to noon to learn about some of the initiatives the department is working on and share your experiences of local planning during a pandemic.  Join Secretary McCord, Assistant Secretary Lazdins, and other Planning staff to discuss the following topics: 

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New! Maryland Department of Planning Launches Housing Dashboard

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Resources and Tools 

By Victoria Olivier, AICP, Central Maryland Regional Planner  

‘Dashboard’ has been trending as one of the top five government jargon terms for the past few years. Many have turned to this data visualization tool to make information more accessible, and to directly and spatially communicate the complicated analytics related to a particular topic. As part of its Housing Element Models and Guidelines (M&G), which we highlighted in last month’s Planning Practice Monthly, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) jumped on the dashboard wagon with housing planning.  

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