Ideas to get past opposition to new housing

At the IEDC International Economic Development Council’s Annual Conference, my topic was Overcoming Divisiveness. In the group discussion, we took on one attendee’s challenge related to housing. You might be facing opposition to housing, too, so I wanted to share our group insights.

Her community has an old auto racetrack that they’d like to revitalize. It has drawn interest from new residents who want to live near it. They’re prosperous folks who want houses with big garages so they can store and work on their vintage racecars. Opposition is coming from families of long standing in the community. She’s heard some say they don’t want “those people” moving in and changing the rural character of their town.

Several people told me they were surprised to hear “those people” used to describe these decidedly upscale potential residents. I really was, too.

Ideas to build bridges

Here are some of the helpful possibilities people shared:

• Can the new residents bring their vintage cars to a local car show, festival or expo? That gives a chance for building relationships between them and the long time residents.
• How can the local organizations involved show appreciation for and understanding of the longer term residents? Are they actively talking with a broad group and not just the loud few?

Benefit the whole community

How could the new housing project benefit everyone in the community, not just new residents? That came up from the audience, and it’s an excellent community building question. A few ideas came up:

• Use this opportunity to train local workers in building trades. On the job experience!
• While they’re working on the new development, find opportunities for infill housing to build new houses in existing parts of town. This helps replace houses that have been lost to fires or neglect over the decades, and it benefits a broader section of the community.

Key takeaways

I shared ways to build stronger collaborations in your community to overcome divisions and conflict. Here are the key takeaways:

1. You build a stronger community through experiences that bring people together from across different groups to each play a meaningful role.
2. Start Coffee and Calendars meetups.
3. Add fellowship time to more events and gatherings.

Attendee Srijita Ghosh said, “Community is the new currency.” That’s definitely true for building collaborations, as long as we don’t act in a monetary or transactional way with people. But rural folks generally get that.

Sharing at future events

I’ll be sharing some of these insights when I present at the Northwest Michigan Housing Summit on October 24. I’ve also just confirmed that I’ll be the guest speaker for the National League of Cities Small Cities Council November 13.

If you’d like me to present to your event, let me know.