In the coming weeks, the Chaffee Housing Authority (CHA) will request support from local officials to place an affordable housing taxation measure on the November ballot.

The CHA will be presenting its plan to the Chaffee County Commissioners, Salida City Council, Buena Vista Town Council, and Poncha Springs Board of Trustees. The funding would be used to support construction of housing for workforce and seniors, and provide rental and down payment assistance, as well as support advocacy efforts and organizational operations.

The proposal for a mill levy comes in response to an unprecedented affordable housing crisis in Chaffee County. Recent research indicates that the homeownership market is out of reach for all but about 9% of county households, and half of renters are cost burdened. Average home prices have increased by 41% since 2020, and the average price of a home for sale in Chaffee County is up to $688,565.

“Big problems require big solutions,” said Craig Nielson, CHA Board Chair. “The housing crisis is affecting everyone, and it will take a community-wide effort to address it. The CHA has developed a strategy that can make a measurable difference and is prepared to step up and lead the way. All we need is support from our leaders and the voters to make it happen.”  

The meeting schedule is as follows; all meetings are open to the public:

  • July 19, 9:30am: Chaffee County, Board of Commissioners
  • July 19, 6pm: Salida, City Council
  • July 26, 6pm: Buena Vista, Board of Trustees
  • August 22, 6:30 pm: Poncha Springs, Board of Trustees

The CHA was founded to address Chaffee’s affordable housing issues, as a partnership between Chaffee County and the municipalities of Salida and Buena Vista. The organization has identified four key steps to address the current crisis: improving policies that make housing more attainable; construction and/or acquisition of affordable housing units (especially rentals); establishing and supporting local programs for those with housing insecurities; and building a sustainable organization with the mandate and financing to address affordable housing.