
The 14 teams selected to participate in the “Our State, Our Homes” program each appear in a different color on this gray map of North Carolina. (Graphic courtesy Carolina Across 100 initiative website)
By Corinne Saunders
MANTEO — The Dare Community Housing Task Force is one of 14 community teams representing 22 counties selected to participate in the “Our State, Our Homes” program led by the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill’s Carolina Across 100 initiative.
The selective statewide program is designed to bring together housing experts, community leaders and resources “to improve access to and availability of affordable housing in North Carolina,” according to a Dare County press release sent the afternoon of Friday, Jan. 10.
“Our State, Our Homes” begins on Thursday, Jan. 16, and will last 18 months.
The program provides the teams of business, civic, education, nonprofit, faith-based and government entities “a variety of supports, all aimed at connecting their communities with the tools and resources needed to assess and make collaborative decisions on how to respond productively to local affordable housing contexts,” according to a to a Jan. 9 UNC-Chapel Hill Carolina Across 100 release.
Over 50 counties applied to the program. This demonstrates “the urgency of addressing the affordable housing issue statewide,” the Dare County release said. “To be selected as one of only 22 counties reflects the strength of Dare County’s leadership and commitment to addressing this pressing issue.”
Statewide, nearly one-third of households are considered cost-burdened, meaning they spend over 30% of their income on housing, according to the UNC release.
“This lack of affordable housing options poses a barrier to attracting employers and workers, limits households’ economic positions and adversely impacts health outcomes,” the UNC release said.
In Dare County, nearly one-third of households, or 4,568, are considered cost-burdened, according to the Dare Community Housing Task Force’s 2024 final report, “Housing for Now and Future Generations.”
“Housing continues to be a critical issue in Dare County,” the Dare County release said.
Being selected is “a significant step forward in our efforts to create sustainable and acceptable housing solutions for Dare County,” Dare Community Housing Task Force Chair Donna Creef said in the release.
“Our participation in this collaborative program will provide us with key resources and expertise to continue work to tackle this critical issue and to ensure all of our residents have access to safe and attainable housing in our community that is within their household incomes,” Creef said.
The housing task force will benefit in many ways from being part of the program, according to the county’s release.
The task force “will have the opportunity to:
Develop a deeper, data-driven understanding of local housing needs,
Strengthen partnerships among government, business, civic and nonprofit organizations,
Implement innovative strategies to improve housing affordability and availability [and]
Learn from and collaborate with peer communities across the state.”
The knowledge and information gained from the program collaborations will be shared publicly to benefit communities across the state, according to the release.
The Dare Community Housing Task Force was established in January 2024 as Dare County’s efforts at affordable workforce housing projects continued to fall through, which Dare County Board of Commissioners members attributed in several public meetings to “NIMBY,” or “not in my backyard,” sentiments.
Attempted housing projects in Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head and Manteo were shut down at the local level before the task force’s creation.
The county abandoned its contract with a private partner, Coastal Affordable Housing, LLC, in April 2024, following strong public pushback and concerns with the company and the contract. The county-specific legislated funding of $35 million for affordable housing was subsequently returned to the state.
“Our State, Our Homes” is the fifth program under Carolina Across 100, a five-year initiative led by the ncIMPACT Initiative. The UNC-Chapel Hill Office of the Chancellor and private foundations fund Carolina Across 100, with support from the UNC School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative.
For more information about the “Our State, Our Homes” program, click here. For more information about the Dare Community Housing Task Force, visit DareNC.gov/Housing. To learn more about Dare County’s involvement in the “Our State, Our Homes” program, contact Creef at dvcreef@gmail.com.
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