2021 Housing Forward Initiative Underway

On October 1st, the City of Lakewood began another round of its tri-annual housing survey. The housing survey is a critical component of the City of Lakewood’s Housing Forward Initiative and includes an exterior property survey of all one- and two-family homes throughout the City. As a result, the Division of Housing and Building and the Division of Planning and Development will have valuable data on nearly 13,000 structures in the community to help inform community-wide problem-solving and decision-making strategies.

Housing Forward is the City of Lakewood’s long-term housing improvement strategy that was launched in 2012 in an effort to prepare Lakewood’s homes for the next 100 years. Since 2012, three city-wide surveys have been completed to assess exterior property code compliance. These surveys have resulted in an increase in the number of residential building permits, leading to enhanced safety and a reduction in signs of blight. The fourth survey, being conducted by the City of Lakewood Division of Housing & Building, is expected to be completed by the end of October. Individuals conducting the survey will assess the exterior of each one- and two-family property for its compliance with the City of Lakewood Property Maintenance and Safety Code (LCO 68-97, Chapter 1306) and give it a score of 1 (Meets Code) to 4 (Significant Disrepair).

Upon completion of the survey, the exterior property scores gathered by the Division of Housing and Building will be aggregated and studied to determine which homes need the most attention. Once determined, the Property Maintenance Inspectors will communicate with homeowners receiving citations in the Spring of 2022. The Property Maintenance Inspectors will connect homeowners with improvement resources, offer technical assistance, and use proactive code enforcement to help homeowners make the necessary improvements to their property.