Over the past several months, the Mercatus Center and graduate fellows from George Mason University diligently evaluated over 500 different local zoning districts across the Northern Virginia Regional Commission’s footprint. In addition to unifying every district onto a single map, they also scoured more than 7,000 pages of regulations to determine what types of homes can or cannot be built in each district.
HousingForward Virginia is excited to join the unified Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance (NVAHA) and Alliance for Housing Solutions (AHS), along with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University for the 2024 Thomas P. Leckey Forum on Thursday, May 30 at the National Landing Experience Center in Arlington.
This year’s Leckey Forum will highlight their work, which culminates in nine new localities — Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax city, Fairfax County, Falls Church, Loudoun, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Prince William, and all their incorporated towns — joining the Virginia Zoning Atlas and National Zoning Atlas projects.
Northern Virginia is the second region added to the Virginia Zoning Atlas, after launching Hampton Roads last fall. Together, these two regions alone are home to half of all Virginians.
Emily Hamilton, Eli Kahn and Andrew Crouch from the Mercatus Center will kick off the event by sharing their findings and connecting the results to housing market dynamics in Northern Virginia today. HousingForward Virginia co-executive directors Jonathan Knopf and Eric Mai will then discuss why this new research matters, and why demystifying zoning is a crucial part of any effort to meaningfully address housing affordability. James Freas, Charlottesville’s deputy city manager, will close out the Leckey Forum by sharing the city’s work to rewrite their zoning ordinance.
Following the Leckey Forum, attendees are encouraged to stay for a cocktail reception and the Regional Housing Leaders Awards Ceremony. You can purchase tickets for just the Forum, or for the entire event, from NVAHA’s website.