A Decade Late, Hinsdale OKs Affordable Housing Plan

HINSDALE, IL – Hinsdale has been required to submit an affordable housing plan to the state for more than a decade. But it has not.

On Tuesday, the Village Board approved such a plan, which Patch detailed in a story Monday.

For the most part, housing in Hinsdale, one of the state's wealthiest towns, is anything but affordable. The median-priced home is $1 million, according to the U.S. Census.

Under state law, towns where affordable housing makes up less than 10 percent of the stock must submit plans every five years. According to the state, just 3.7 percent of Hinsdale's homes are considered affordable.

At Tuesday's meeting, Village President Greg Hart, who took office last week, noted the village submitted a plan in 2005. The new document, he said, builds on the framework of the last one.

"To be very clear, this is not a new policy initiative by the village," Hart said. "This update is being undertaken solely to comply with Illinois law, which requires a submission of an updated plan by July 2025."

He said the two-decade-old law requiring the plans had been amended, requiring towns to turn in plans by June.

The village received the help of a consulting firm, Teska Associates, in updating the document.

The plan indicates that 128 acres in Hinsdale are zoned for multifamily housing, which the village identified as most suitable for affordable homes.

Those acres make up 4.3 percent of Hinsdale's total area.

To incentivize affordable housing, the village said it could reduce water bills and fees for building permits or zoning applications for such units. These suggestions were also in the 2005 plan.

Officials did not give much of an indication that such ideas would be carried out.

"The state requirements do not mandate Hinsdale alter its zoning code in order to provide this plan, and we have not altered our zoning code," Trustee Luke Stifflear said.

Here are the percentages of affordable housing in selected towns over the last decade:

Here are the numbers of affordable housing units out of the total units in selected towns over the last decade:

n.a.: not available

Source: Illinois Housing Development Authority