NCPA

Housing Needs Assessment and Market Strategy

North Central Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission

Economic Strategy

The North Central Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission (“North Central”) is a private, nonprofit corporation established in 1965 as the designated Local Development District (LDD) for the six-county area in Pennsylvania that includes Cameron, Clearfield, Elk, Jefferson, McKean, and Potter counties. As such, it is responsible for economic and community development initiatives to enhance the quality of life of the people living within the counties that it serves.

North Central recognized that in order to soundly manage growth and development and improve quality of life at a regional level, the region collectively must understand its current and future housing conditions, as well as unmet housing opportunities and needs. Fourth Economy helped develop the Regional Housing Needs Assessment and Market Study in response, documenting existing housing conditions in the community; identifying market and other forces that affect housing supply and demand, now and projected into the future; identifying gaps or deficiencies in maintaining equitable access to safe, resilient, and reliable housing for all community members; and identifying opportunities for improving and expanding housing options to meet the region’s needs.

Our Approach

To guide the planning process, North Central convened a Steering Committee of regional housing experts, planners, and economic development practitioners to help identify stakeholders to engage to brainstorm and refine strategies. Two strategy development sessions were held to confirm housing needs in the region, hear about local solutions, and brainstorm how regional partners might work together to implement targeted strategies. More than 40 stakeholders from across the region participated in these sessions, which directly informed the report’s recommendations.

The Results

This study is meant to provide local governments, communities, developers, and the public with a shared understanding of the housing market, key housing issues, and current and future housing needs in the region. The intention is that the study will serve as a platform for future collaborative housing strategy development by regional stakeholders to address regional as well as county- or community-specific housing needs.

North Central is hosting a meeting of the PA Partnerships for Regional Economic Performance (PREP) members in October 2022, to share the results of the study, and encourage regional collaboration around these issues.