Conversations on Development: Missing Middle Housing and Smart Development

If you have been paying attention to current events, it's hard to deny that our nation, and by extension our region, is experiencing a time of tightening. Everyday residents are paying more for goods and services, housing, gas, and simply existing. Did you ever think you would see restaurateurs withholding eggs from their menus? The resulting “reordering” will have implications on how we build communities going forward.

Many will argue that constriction is a necessary and inevitable part of the life cycle of the economy. What feels a little different right now is that we haven’t yet recovered from Covid-19 and there are many “new norms” we continue to adjust to as workers are being shuffled or displaced altogether. Manufacturers continue to be challenged by supply chain issues. The logistics industry continues to struggle with increased costs and capacity and decreased demand. And much of our nation’s infrastructure is failing. These indicators are worth noting because they have implications for how the American population will relocate over the next decade, especially for those in households making less than $75,000 annually.  

These changes are coming faster than developers can accommodate. Communities that are adaptable and agile in their zoning processes, incentives, and community engagement stand to benefit the most. Developers from all over the nation have their eye on communities where conditions are ripe for innovative neighborhoods to emerge. The Greater Chattanooga area is one such community. At MiKeN, we are dedicated to ‘getting it right’ for Chattanoogans with an eye toward bringing forward the best parts of our history while demonstrating our agility to position ourselves for success during this pivotal time. 

As our team contributes to shaping the future of Chattanooga, we are focused on two key arenas: Missing Middle Housing and Smart Development. 

What is Missing Middle Housing?

This article by Congress for New Urbanism outlines Missing Middle Housing as an initiative designed to confront and help remedy a serious market gap in many walkable urban places.

A crucial factor in their development is diversity—not just diversity of residents, but in housing, transportation, and workplace choices. These developments allow neighborhoods to maintain their character while accommodating changing demographics and housing needs, promoting inclusivity and market growth. According to the National League of Cities and our own Mayor, Tim Kelly, housing for low-to-moderate income households is in critically short supply. This shortage can have serious consequences for family stability, neighborhood cohesion, and workforce development. A shared goal we have with the City of Chattanooga is designing neighborhoods that allow teachers, law enforcement professionals, cooks, and firefighters to afford to live inside the city limits. In other words, the folks who are the backbone of our society. 

It is imperative that we seize this moment in time to accelerate these types of developments. If we don’t, we stand to price out the very residents who built Chattanooga and upon whom we depend for it to thrive moving forward. 

But how do we accomplish this? 

What is Smart Development?

Simply put, according to this article Smart Development means reinvesting in America’s downtowns and main streets to benefit families of all income levels living alongside one another in locations where daily needs are close by. Smart Development encourages a mix of building types and uses, diverse housing and transportation options, development within existing neighborhoods, and robust community engagement. At MiKeN, we deliver on the tenets set by the US EPA to build communities that:

1. Leverage mixed land use

2. Take advantage of efficient design

3. Create a range of housing opportunities and choices

4. Create walkable neighborhoods

5. Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place

6. Preserve green space and critical environmental areas

7. Direct development towards existing communities

8. Provide walkability and access to a variety of transportation choices

9. Make development decisions predictable, fair, and cost-effective

10. Encourage stakeholder collaboration in development decisions

As we work together to address the critical need for Missing Middle Housing by creating Smart Developments, our team is committed to inviting you into the conversation. To learn more about what we’re doing, who benefits, and how you can shape the future, stay tuned for updates to our current projects and get involved in helping us create communities that anchor the region to our values while positioning us for new growth.