City Council Approves Amendments to City Lots For Working Families Program
An ordinance amending the City Lots for Working Families (CL4WF) Program passed City Council today, proposing updates to modernize the initiative.
Originally approved in 2017, the CL4WF program has successfully supported affordable home construction by selling City-owned lots to developers. However, discrepancies remain between the number of lots approved by City Council and the homes ultimately built. The amendments seek to close this gap by adjusting program thresholds for inflation and refining eligibility criteria.
|
|
Current |
Proposed |
|
Housing Type |
Single Family, Townhome, 2-flat |
Add 3- and 4-unit homes; add condos city-wide (Woodlawn-only now); allow co-ops |
|
Unit requirements |
Minimum of 8. Maximum of 20. |
Cluster size determined by DOH prior to CBB listing |
|
Buyer Income |
Maximum of 140% AMI |
Maximum 150% AMI |
|
Long-term affordability |
Homes could be placed into Chicago Housing Trust (or CCLT) |
Allow community land trusts Allow co-ops |
|
Affordable/Market |
75% / 25% |
50% / 50% |
|
Inflation |
No adjustments for inflation |
Adjust city thresholds for inflation (or deflation,) annually or bi-annually |
The ordinance also raises the maximum household income for buyers from 140% to 150% of Area Median Income (AMI), expanding eligibility for current offerings and supporting the potential addition of three- and four-unit owner-occupied homes.
Additionally, the Department of Housing requested authority to amend existing CL4WF Redevelopment Agreements to align with the updated program structure, subject to approval by the DOH Commissioner and the Department of Law.