Frederick City Council drafts resolution to turn affordable housing study into action
The proposed resolution would make the mayor’s Affordable Housing Task Force report a framework for future legislation, budgeting, land-use decisions and regulatory changes.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW
The resolution was drafted by City Council President César Díaz. It follows the release of the Mayor’s Affordable Housing Task Force final report. The city wants to use the report as a framework for future housing policy. The draft identifies nine high-priority actions. Those include creating an Affordable Housing Commission, an implementation team and a new housing-focused city position. The resolution also calls for annual progress reporting and coordination with other levels of government. Council members raised concerns about infrastructure and the share of multifamily development occurring inside the city. Rent stabilization is one of the policy tools being discussed, but no such policy has been adopted through this resolution. The city’s task force was created specifically to translate housing research into practical local recommendations.
Frederick City Council members are discussing a proposed resolution designed to make sure the city’s latest affordable housing study does not simply become another report that sits on a shelf.
Council President César Díaz drafted the resolution after the mayor’s office presented the final recommendations from the Mayor’s Affordable Housing Task Force, which was created to identify practical ways to expand housing options and improve affordability in Frederick. The task force’s final report, “Opening Doors in Frederick: An Action Agenda for Affordable Housing,” was released in July after months of meetings involving housing professionals, nonprofit leaders, advocates and city staff.
The resolution would commit the City Council to using that report as a primary framework for future housing legislation, budget priorities, land-use decisions and regulatory reforms.
It also calls on city departments to treat the report as an actionable work plan and develop implementation timelines and accountability measures.
The draft identifies nine high-priority action items, including creating an Affordable Housing Commission to oversee the City Housing Fund, forming a cross-departmental implementation team, establishing a new city position focused on housing, reviewing outdated laws and practices and researching new financing tools.
Díaz said the goal is to move beyond simply studying the problem and toward measurable implementation.
The proposal also emphasizes avoiding displacement of current residents, coordinating with county, state and federal partners and creating an annual report to track progress.
City Council Vice President Katie Nash said the resolution should make clear that affordable housing is not an optional policy area and suggested formally recognizing housing as critical infrastructure.
The discussion also focused heavily on the imbalance between multifamily housing development inside the city and elsewhere in Frederick County.
Council Member Joe Adkins said the county issued 296 permits for multifamily housing between 2022 and 2025, while the City of Frederick issued more than 2,100 during the same period.
Adkins argued that the disparity places additional pressure on city infrastructure and could lead to more development pressure on marginal or redevelopment sites.
Several council members said those concerns should be discussed with Frederick County officials during a planned joint city-county council meeting in December.
Council Member Sarah Hempel Irani also suggested adding language to the resolution that would acknowledge residents’ concerns about whether roads, schools, utilities and other infrastructure are keeping pace with growth.
The draft has also raised questions about one of the tools mentioned in the broader housing recommendations: rent stabilization.
Matthew Pipkin of the Maryland Multi-Housing Association warned council members that rent stabilization could reduce rental income, property values and property-tax revenue.
Housing advocates, meanwhile, expressed support for the resolution.
Ann Ryan, co-chair of the Frederick Housing Solutions Task Force, said the resolution could help Frederick move beyond relying on the private market alone to solve its housing affordability challenges.
The discussion builds on the city’s broader affordability concerns. Frederick’s own housing data shows the median home value rose from about $301,000 in 2010 to $425,700 in 2023, while median rent increased from $961 to $1,635 over the same period.
The proposed resolution does not itself approve new housing developments or enact rent controls. Instead, it would establish a policy direction for how the city uses the task force recommendations going forward.
WHAT IT MEANS
This resolution would not create 4,000 homes by itself.
Its significance is that it would formally tie future City Council decisions to the task force’s recommendations and create a process for tracking whether the city actually follows through.
For residents, the bigger debate will likely center on how Frederick balances adding more housing with infrastructure needs, affordability protections, development incentives and concerns about the pace of growth.
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