Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority is best known for providing affordable housing for families in Hamilton County. However, CMHA is also dedicated to improving lives by promoting self-sufficiency and neighborhood stability through partnerships that create entrepreneurial opportunities. Who benefits from our work? How can we leverage housing to do more for the families we serve? And how can we break generational cycles of poverty and advance the quality of life for families including residents and employees? Those are some of the questions we consider when we renovate or develop new CMHA properties. 
The economic impact of Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority development can best be described in three phases. Phase I includes local industries involved in affordable housing construction which have a direct impact on the economy by creating jobs, income and local taxes. Phase II is the ripple effect where the wages and profits earned by local residents are spent with other local businesses and on locally produced goods. Phase III is an ongoing or annual effect where the people impacted by the construction have new and improved homes and disposable income which leads to increased spending. 
Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority has started implementing the bold transformation plan at the self-developed sites which include 656 affordable housing units across Hamilton County. A key item to note is of the $128 million needed to preserve the homes, $118 million are non-tax payer dollars. 
Over the last several years, we have met or exceeded our goals for Economic Inclusion which improves equity for Hamilton County families. That trend continued for the first quarter of FY2021. As a reminder, the HUD and CMHA goals for the program are:
  • 20% of all new construction contracts go to Section 3 Businesses (CMHA doubled HUD’s goal of 10%)
  • 30% of all new hires that are a result of an awarded contract are Section 3 individuals
  • 20% of construction contracts go to MBEs
  • 5% of all contracts awarded go to WBEs 
We resolve to be an Asset to Hamilton County by addressing the needs of local families. 

If your business is interested in learning more about the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority Economic Inclusion Program, click here to email us.

Sincerely,