Marcel Camacho, executive director of the Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Authority, gave a preview of that challenge and outlined a five-year strategic plan on Tuesday before members of the Rotary Club of Tumon Bay during their weekly meeting at the Hilton Guam Resort & Spa.
Under the new administration, Camacho was appointed by Gov. Eddie Calvo in January to be the head of GHURA. Not only has he taken helm of the 100 percent federally funded GHURA, he has also been assigned by Calvo to tackle the major issue of affordable housing.
An executive order signed by the governor in July created the Affordable Housing Coordinating Council, an initiative aimed at the development and enhancement of affordable housing programs. Camacho is chairperson of the council, while Sen. Tina Muña-Barnes is co-chairperson.
According to Camacho, the inception of AHCC came about when a study was done prior to 2009. GHURA hired a private entity to study the housing market and estimate the demands for affordable housing in the future.
“What they came up with was a number of 6,000 affordable units for GHURA clients by 2020. … Leading to 2030, that type of demand would be 13,000 units,” said Camacho. “So the governor took those numbers and said we need to work on them today.”
Thus began the planning stages of the goal to create 3,000 homes in what Camacho bargained would be feasible through six years. They estimate that 500 units would be developed annually.
Currently, the role of AHCC is to work towards fostering partnerships with federal, local, private and nonprofit entities.
Not only is the government aiming to build homes, it is also looking to develop communities.
“We’re not just looking to build homes,” said Camacho, “we’re looking to develop sustainable communities where we have mixed-income neighborhoods – we don’t want areas of just one low income root. … Mixing the incomes is a planning process and we’re looking to achieve that in the long run.”
Camacho also highlighted the need to improve mass transportation.
