Henrico County is working on its next comprehensive plan – and if you’re a Henrico resident, they want your input.  (Even if you’re not a Henrico resident, read on to learn why this matters for you, too!)

Virginia’s towns, cities, and counties must write comprehensive plans and update them every five years.  These plans are powerful documents. They outline a vision and describe practical steps communities can take toward effective use of land and investments. The guidelines shape decisions made by everyone from local planning officials to individual landowners. And that’s because comprehensive plans form the foundation of zoning ordinances, the legal levers that put comprehensive plans into action.

As you might guess, we have some thoughts!  How can future development respond to a lack of fairness in housing opportunities today while fostering a stronger, more inclusive, and thriving community?  Here are our top-three recommendations for principles that should shape HenricoNext, the county’s forthcoming comprehensive plan:

• Start with the numbers: There are too few homes in Henrico County, and available housing costs too much. Only 7% of county land zoned for residential use permits multifamily housing – apartment complexes – severely limiting opportunities for low- and middle-income workers. For current residents, Henrico’s home prices and average rents require those making the median income to spend more than 30% of their pay on housing – a level economists call “cost-burdened.” Housing costs in Henrico represent a direct challenge to the county’s job market, as even many employees of the county cannot afford to live there. As the county manager recently noted, the unaffordability of housing in Henrico is “a threat to our quality of life.”
• Focus on fairness: Housing opportunities in Henrico are not only limited, but also far from equal. The county has the Richmond region’s widest gap in access to high-performing schools for Black and Hispanic children compared to white students. Henrico also has the largest population of foreign-born residents in the Richmond region – individuals who are likelier to have incomes too low to afford housing in Henrico. In recent years, foreign-born residents have also represented most of the county’s population growth, demonstrating a sustained need for policies that would make housing for newcomers more accessible. Currently, the Partnership for Housing Affordability estimates, Henrico County needs to construct 11,800 affordable rental units just to house those making less than 50% of the area’s median income, while vast numbers of middle-income residents lack affordable options as well.
• Embrace proven strategies: Solutions to Henrico’s housing crisis abound near and far. Consider one tool already at-hand, but currently unused: In 2022, the Virginia General Assembly passed a law enabling localities to incentivize housing construction. Last year, the City of Richmond used this law to start offering grants that reduce taxes on affordable developments. But no such policy exists in the counties surrounding Richmond, even as builders tell us they are eager for incentives. Meanwhile, localities elsewhere have proven success in cutting red tape to meet market demand. Minneapolis extended by-right approval and fast-track permitting to affordable rental developments constructed next to public transit connections starting in 2017. A recent study by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that in the years since, housing stock in Minneapolis has grown by 12% while rents rose only 1%. (Average rent in Henrico rose more than 25% during the same period.) This is a remarkable achievement given the inflation of recent years, and strong evidence that ending exclusions while creating incentives is a strategy that works.

The bottom line? HenricoNext should promote wealth creation, opportunity, and stability for the county’s diverse communities – now and in the future.

Click here to see how you can engage as Henrico County hosts listening sessions throughout the month. They’re also offering online resources, including a survey, an interactive map, and resources for planning your own meeting with a church or community group.  Participating in any of these ways offers a chance to share your aspirations and leverage our collective potential.

Not a Henrico County resident? Your own locality will update its comprehensive plan soon – by law, within the next five years. Search “comprehensive plan” along with the name of your town, to see where things stand.

Thanks for staying engaged!

—Laura Dobbs, Director of Policy, HOME of VA