Housing Task Force

Housing is clearly a foundational social determinant of health and key success factor for workforce development, educational advancement, and wealth equity. While the country is engulfed in a housing crisis, the situation is made much worse in Rhode Island due to a history of underinvestment, stagnant wages and aging housing stock. As the median cost of housing rises each month, residents in Pawtucket and Central Falls — already the highest density community — are being squeezed even further.

As a priority area for the HEZ, the collaborative formed a Housing Task Force comprised of dozens of residents, housing advocates, program providers and city leadership. This task force began with advocacy training to build understanding of the complexities of affordable housing development. Members of the task force volunteered as resident educators for LIHEAP applications, attended the Central Falls Nuisance Task Force meetings with the city, met with the planning department to outline goals and find solutions to improve the city's efforts to create housing, and began to roll up their sleeves and review zoning and proposed changes. The Task Force is working with the cities and reviewing the current procedures for lead abatement and developing recommendations for more streamlined procedures.

As the cities prepare their Comprehensive Plans, the Housing Task Force has hired a consultant specializing in zoning and city planning to help create a path forward for housing expansion and develop a platform that the PCF HEZ will support. This partnership has galvanized the community, encouraged civic participation, and enabled the residents to rally around success stories created by the partners.