CASE STUDY:
Dane County
Regional Housing Strategy
Addressing the housing crisis through a collaborative, equity-driven regional action plan.
Downtown Lemont had all the ingredients for success—stunning natural landscapes, rich history, and a community that genuinely cared about their place. But ingredients alone don't create magic. Sometimes a place needs that special spark, the intentional strategy that transforms potential into thriving reality. This is the story of how comprehensive community partnership and authentic storytelling helped ignite an energy that transformed a sleepy downtown into a regional destination, proving that marketing isn't just promotion—it's economic development.
The Challenge
The Challenge: A Growing County, A Shrinking Supply of Affordable Homes
Dane County’s housing needs were complex and interwoven:
Shortage of supply: Permitting lagged far behind demand, creating a shortfall of 8,000 units over a decade.
Price escalation: Median home prices jumped from $226K in 2010 to $369K in 2022.
Equity gaps: Only 13% of Black households owned homes compared to 64% of White households.
Severe rent burden: Over 70% of extremely low-income renters spent more than 30% of their income on housing.
It was clear: to address the crisis, the county needed a strategy that prioritized both people and production.
Our Approach
Community-Driven Strategy Grounded in Lived Experience
From the beginning, the RHS was structured to center voices too often left out of policy conversations. The process featured:
Unprecedented Regional Collaboration
The 80+ member Housing Advisory Committee (HAC) included elected officials from 17 cities, villages, and towns; nonprofit housing partners; developers; builders; banks; state agencies; and interested residents
Cross-sector planning across 11 months of facilitated interactive workshops focused on coalition-building, knowledge exchange, historical impacts of discriminatory housing policies, and housing vision/priority/strategy development
Countywide Engagement of All Scales
A multilingual survey with 6,380 responses across all ZIP codes in Dane County (English, Hmong, and Spanish)
Focus groups with historically underrepresented communities including LGBTQ+, youth, Black, Hmong, Latino, and senior residents
Stakeholder interviews and inventories of local housing programs and policies
Post-meeting detailed workbooks broke down technical housing data into easy-to-understand insights with graphics
Bold Vision, Measurable Goals
Together, participants developed a long-term vision for an equitable and environmentally sustainable future where all residents have access to quality, affordable housing in connected neighborhoods. This included:
A housing production target of 139,000 new units by 2040, up from the current pace of 5,000 per year
Explicit focus on racial equity, affordability, and community empowerment
Defined needs: 35,300 legally restricted affordable rental units, 6,000 specialized senior units, and 250 affordable single-family homes annually
The Solution: A Five-Part Strategy for Collective Action
The Strategy lays out five strategic priorities to move from vision to action:
Affordable Housing Units: Public-private partnerships, expanded funding, and land banking
Overall Housing Supply: Zoning reforms, construction workforce development, rural housing strategies
Vulnerable Population Protection: Renter assistance, fair housing enforcement, equity education
Existing Housing Preservation: Energy efficiency upgrades, acquisition support, rehab loan programs
Homeownership Pathways: Affordable production, community land trusts, buyer education and assistance
With nearly $50M allocated in 2024 to advance the SAP priorities, the SAP builds in accountability through yearly work plans, shared progress tracking, and continued regional data coordination.
The Outcome: A Replicable Model for Housing Solutions Rooted in Community
The Dane County Regional Housing Strategy proves that complex housing challenges require technical solutions paired with community-led processes and sustained cross-jurisdictional collaboration.
Key outcomes and lessons include:
A flexible, three-phase planning framework that can be adapted to different regional contexts
Extensive engagement without burnout, through thoughtful meeting design, participant support, and multilingual outreach
A strong implementation plan, grounded in local realities, that translates strategy into action
A model for replication: From building early trust to defining scope and securing sustained investment, the RHS offers a roadmap for regions facing similar challenges
By bringing community voices to the center, aligning diverse partners, and planning with—not just for—the people of Dane County, this SAP sets a new standard for what regional housing planning can be.
