Bluffton ordinance doubles workforce housing requirement for new planned developments
Bluffton Town Council unanimously approved an ordinance Tuesday evening that aims to double the number of units required to be affordable in planned developments and further restrict the income level required to qualify for affordable housing.
The ordinance, first recommended by the Affordable Housing Committee in 2018 and previously approved by the Planning Commission and council on first reading, amends three sections of the town’s Unified Development Ordinance.
Planned unit developments — mixed-use, master-planned communities such as Buckwalter Place, New Riverside and Belfair PUD (which includes Belfair Towne Village and nearby commercial and retail space, but not the residential space and golf course) — must include at least 20% affordable or workforce housing, up from the current 10% requirement. For planned-unit developments that have been renovated, the requirement applies only to the new part.
The ordinance also changes the qualifications for those seeking to purchase affordable housing. Now, sales are limited to those who earn no more than 100% of the gross area median income for Beaufort County, as determined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Those who earned up to 120% of the gross area median income could qualify to buy affordable housing.
The tightening of qualifications is intended to increase the number of units available to lower-income households, the recommendation from the AHC states.
The ordinance changes the definition of low- and moderate-income families to those who earn up to 100% of the Beaufort-area median income. In 2020, the area median income for a family of four in Beaufort County was $83,000.
The ordinance is part of a broader initiative by town council to focus on affordable housing. In 2010, the Affordable Housing Committee was created, and in 2018, town council added affordable and workforce housing to its list of strategic focus areas for the past year.
“It will be interesting to see how this plays out with our mission on this,” Mayor Lisa Sulka said. ”Great work.”
Clarification: An earlier version of this story mentioned Belfair without distinguishing between the residential, golf course, commercial and retail space. Belfair PUD includes Belfair Towne Village and commercial and retail space adjacent to U.S. 278.
This story was originally published July 16, 2020 at 4:47 PM.
