Smart Growth America has been selected to lead a cohort of four cities in a Delaware State Housing Authority program to modernize municipal zoning and land-use policies aimed at increasing the supply of affordable housing.

The Zoning and Land Use Reform Pilot Program, created through the passage of Delaware Senate Joint Resolution 8 (SJR8), will enable nine jurisdictions to receive free technical assistance from three planning consultants, with the goals of encouraging a greater variety of housing types, promoting compact, mixed-use development, and addressing housing affordability challenges. Smart Growth America was selected as one of three planning consultants to support participating jurisdictions through this competitive pilot program.

Through this program, Smart Growth America will support Bridgeville, Georgetown, Milford, and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, in advancing pre-selected targeted zoning solutions, including expanding missing middle and ADUs, enabling compact, higher-density housing, reducing regulatory barriers such as excessive parking requirements, and creating tools to support affordable and workforce housing.

“At Smart Growth America, we know that outdated zoning rules too often stand between communities and the prosperity they’re working to build for everyone who lives there,” said Toccarra Nicole Thomas, Assistant Vice President of Housing and Development at Smart Growth America. “We’re excited to partner with communities across Delaware to help expand housing options and strengthen local economies by modernizing zoning to meet today’s needs. We applaud the Delaware State Housing Authority and state leaders for advancing this effort, and we can’t wait to get started.”

This work builds on Smart Growth America’s Center for Zoning Solutions' efforts to remove regulatory barriers to more housing in the right places at the right price and to support communities in aligning zoning with today’s housing needs.

To learn more, visit: https://www.destatehousing.com/planning-assistance/