Some Wilmington-area workforce housing advocates say the community needs a combination of public and private efforts to address a growing shortage of affordable dwellings.
The New Hanover Community Endowment can’t be the only source of funding, they say, reacting to recent statements and actions by local officials.
“You have to have multiple people honed in on it…One entity can’t be responsible for the funding of it,” said Jeff Hovis, chairman of the Cape Fear Housing Coalition’s executive board, vice chair of the Wilmington Housing Authority board and a local Realtor. “We have different state and federal avenues to go at it, but none of them can provide all your money. The housing authority, for example, they can’t depend 100% on HUD or federal funds. … There’s gaps in everything. And generally, you get federal funds by your local entities also contributing in the mix, in addition to finding maybe quasi-government type entities for funding.”…