Chattanooga mayor proposes $100 million affordable housing initiative

Staff Photo by Robin Rudd / Mayor Tim Kelly announces a $100 million housing initiative to help Chattanooga boost its supply of housing, on the steps of the city hall on East 11th Street, on March 31, 2022. Staff Photo by Robin Rudd / Mayor Tim Kelly announces a $100 million housing initiative to help Chattanooga boost its supply of housing, on the steps of the city hall on East 11th Street, on March 31, 2022.

By Mike Pare March 31, 2022 4 min read

With housing costs climbing to record levels and wages failing to keep up, Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly on Thursday unveiled plans for a $100 million affordable housing initiative over five years.

“In a very real way, Chattanooga faces a crossroads,” Kelly said in a news conference in front of City Hall, adding that housing affordability is increasingly intolerable and helping drive homelessness.

He said the city plans to put up $33 million in “seed” money in the upcoming budget without raising taxes. The remaining two-thirds funding is to be raised working with nonprofit groups, banks, foundations and other entities.

Kelly expects that thousands of affordable homes will be created and rehabilitated in what the city is calling the largest such effort in its history. The first projects will see funding by the end of this year, the mayor said.

He said the effort will involve apartments, single-family homes, duplexes and other housing types across the city.