Tulsa lacks an essential 6,000 affordable units for all Tulsans to have a place to call home. Nearly half of Tulsa's renters, a staggering 46%, struggle under the weight of being cost-burdened. These financial strains not only limit an individual’s ability to meet other essential needs but also perpetuate a cycle of economic instability.
Major Goals
Increase affordable housing stock by 6,000 units by 2028
Reduce blighted properties by 60% by 2028
Reduce Tulsa’s eviction rate
Reduce the cost burden taken on by developers to produce more affordable housing stock
As we work to address the housing affordability crises and create more housing, Gene Bulmash will lead these efforts for the City as the Senior Advisor of Housing. On February 24, I signed an Executive Order that officially made housing a priority for Tulsa and laid out the steps we plan to take to help us reach established goals.
Ultimately, this Executive Order establishes the following:
Create a Housing Acceleration Team - This team will pilot permitting, inspection, and zoning improvements to more efficiently review and approve building permits, inspection requests, and zoning applications. The team’s goal will be to learn from the process and develop more permanent improvements to all building permit, inspection requests, and zoning applications. The team has already been identified and will begin its work immediately.
Launch a Housing Permitting Tracker – The City is currently working on a publicly-available source where the issuance of building permits and Certificates of Occupancy will be tracked to help identify the progress the City is making on increasing affordable housing stock. The online platform is expected to be released publicly sometime this spring.
Launch the Community Builder Program – This spring, I will formally establish a Community Builder Pilot Program to encourage housing rehabilitation efforts by partnering with and rewarding developers for their efforts to increase housing stock. This program will assist in turning vacant, abandoned, and blighted properties back into usable housing by eliminating some of the challenges involved in the process. The Community Builder Pilot Program is expected to offer key incentives, including the potential for a substantial reduction in permit fees and fast-tracked permitting for interior remodels and preferred partner status. The incentives will be aimed at allowing builders to streamline the approval process. Participants will also receive support from a dedicated program liaison who will monitor code enforcement complaints and assist with compliance.
Present a plan for IOT3 $75 million Housing Funds – This spring, in conjunction with the City Council, I will present a plan for the implementation of the Improve Our Tulsa 3 housing funds, working to leverage the $75 million approved by Tulsa residents to the maximum extent possible. An additional step will include the issuance of a Request for Information (RFI) to learn more about the scope and type of applications that may be submitted when requesting funding from the Improve Our Tulsa 3 program. This will assist City staff in determining whether to issue bonds to obtain funds sooner, and if bonds are issued, how best to apply those funds to the housing categories approved by the Tulsa City Council.
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