KEDC Housing Discussion and Steering Committee Formation

Kodiak Economic Development Corporation (KEDC) held a Housing Discussion on February 14, 2024 to bring housing, banking, municipal and community leaders together for a working lunch meeting to discuss the challenges and opportunities with addressing the need for more affordable housing. KEDC Executive Director John Whiddon, “Participants discussed the real economic costs of the housing shortage for their businesses and our community. Land access, infrastructure limitations, communications challenges and funding were identified as obstacles to growth. Positive takeaways included the recognition of the need to inject a sense of urgency in pursing solutions and the creation of a Housing Steering Committee that will meet to focus on identifying actionable steps.”

Meeting facilitator and President of Koniag, Shauna Hegna, was instrumental in the success of the discussions shared, “Understanding the impact that the lack of housing is having on local businesses is critical to helping our community to understand that we are in the midst of a housing crisis. When local businesses are losing talent because employees cannot find housing, or can only find employees if they provide housing, there is an issue. Most small business owners will tell you they want to operate their business which is not the business of housing. The experiences provided by local businesses was profound. It highlighted that its time that the entire Kodiak community come together to identify and implement solutions.”

The discussion was attended by 24 community and municipal leaders in person. 14 agencies including HUD, Denali Commission, Alaska Municipal League and others attended virtually to discuss Kodiak’s affordable housing shortage.

KEDC sincerely appreciates and thanks Koniag for the use of their facilities, providing lunch for everyone, as well as staff that supported the events running smoothly.

KEDC also appreciates the technical support KANA provided for the event.

As KEDC moves forward to support the Housing Steeing Committee, the next steps will be to identify priorities and build a business case that will resonate politically and enable Kodiak to compete for funding at both the state and federal levels.