The Land-of-Sky Regional Council has contracted with Benchmark to prepare the Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI) for a five county region in Western North Carolina (Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania). The AI will serve as the Council’s working plan to further the cause of fair housing and to assist in comprehensive Fair Housing planning.

Land-of-Sky Regional Council is a Council of Governments that is working with the City of Asheville, a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) entitlement city as, the principal city within the region.  The City of Asheville is also the Participating Jurisdiction (PJ) for the “Asheville Regional Housing Consortium,” managing HOME funds for Asheville and participating governments in Buncombe, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania counties. In order to receive federal grants for programs such as the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Home Investment Partnership Program (HOME), Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG), and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), HUD requires entitlement cities and counties with populations over 10,000 to update their Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice on a regular basis. Therefore, the AI will also stand as the working plan for the City of Asheville and the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium’s as they work to further the cause of fair housing and to assist in comprehensive fair housing planning.

The AI is separate from but related to the City’s Consolidated Plan, which was completed in April 2010 for the five year period between 2010 and 2015.  The study is expected to be completed by June 2011.