22-02-2025
Wake Forest symposium tackles rising housing demand
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (WGHP) — They say growth is a good thing, but are we ready for it? As more businesses and industries move into the Piedmont Triad, the demand for housing is rising fast.
Experts at the Wake Forest Law Review Symposium gathered on Friday to talk about how we can tackle this challenge.
They highlighted the need for municipalities to collaborate with other local entities, developers and the state to address the housing need. Experts say this is something that can't wait.
'The coming housing crisis that we have in our community. It's estimated that Greensboro will need between 10,000 to 30,000 new homes between 2030,' said Don Vaughan, a Wake Forest Law Review Symposium panelist.
Law and policy experts, community leaders and housing advocates spent the day discussing strategies to address housing.
'There are more people coming into Greensboro in the Triad than there are people leaving, and we've got to meet that crisis and meet it soon,' Vaughan said.
He said more businesses means more people.
'We've had great success here with economic development at the airport. We have Boom … coming in. We have Marshall Aerospace coming in. We've had great success with Honda Jet and all the other industries out there … We have Toyota battery coming,' Vaughan said.
The conference highlighted legal frameworks, local initiatives and the impact of race on housing accessibility, but the big question is where to build.
'NIMBY: Not in my backyard … Everybody wants housing but not where it is. The proper areas that can provide people transportation can provide them food services … Look at those areas now. Encourage the developers to build in those areas all around the city … It's a big challenge,' Vaughan said.
Experts also spoke to the lack of available funding to build affordable housing. They also highlighted efforts of municipalities to address housing concerns.
'The Greensboro city manager is putting together a task force right now to look at available sites, to look at what inventory we have in homes … to try to get ahead of what's coming. We've never faced this in Greensboro since we moved in the troops in World War II,' Vaughan said.
When speaking about housing needs, panelists also addressed the topic of gentrification and the need to renovate and upgrade public housing.
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