Position Information

Arlington County's is seeking a dynamic, energetic, and innovative Housing Director. This is a unique opportunity to work on a variety of housing solutions for one of the country's most densely populated and well-educated communities. Recently, Arlington County has attracted new and expanding companies that have or will be bringing tens of thousands of new, high paying jobs to the County over the coming decade. This significant influx of workers will further stress the region's already competitive housing market.

Duties include:

• Implementing a new Housing Arlington initiative through a multi-department effort, while remaining responsible for other housing programs and initiatives that serve a diverse community;
• Providing regional solutions to solve the complex challenge of serving the growing needs of the low and moderate-income residents in the County;
• Developing strategies to increase supply for low income residents and moderate-income residents who are also impacted by increasing housing prices; and
• Providing comprehensive approach to meeting housing needs, which is vital for economic sustainability, diversity, and quality of life.

The Housing Director leads one of six divisions in the Department of Community Planning Housing and Development (CPHD) and reports to the Director of CPHD. The Housing Director has four direct reports: Housing Development Supervisor, Housing Planning and Community Section Supervisor, Housing Finance and Asset Management Section Supervisor, and Housing Arlington Coordinator. The Housing Director works closely with the other division heads in the department, especially the Planning Director, as well as the Human Services Department and County Attorney's Office. Staff members in the Housing Division serve as liaisons to three County Board-appointed citizen committees: Housing Commission, Tenant Landlord Commission, and Community Development Citizens Advisory Committee.

The Ideal Candidate

The successful candidate will be an inspiring and experienced leader with a strong record of achievement in the following areas:

• Developing innovative solutions to complex housing issues in Arlington County and the region;
• Political savvy and confident as both a leader and a subject matter expert;
• Building strong relationships through collaboration and innovation with multiple stakeholders, community leaders, housing advocates, housing developers, service providers, the County Board, and County staff;
• Presenting and explaining complex housing and finance issues;
• Defining the direction of housing programs and initiatives and engaging key internal and external stakeholders in the vision for housing in Arlington County;
• Serving as a trusted advisor to the Director and County leadership, with an ability to lead and foster excellence and innovation in staff, and direct the division and department in efforts to achieve broad County and community goals;
• Developing and implementing development of housing policies;
• Understanding how land use and financial tools can be used to create affordable units, and the ability to see both long-term and short-term steps necessary to make concrete progress toward goals; and
• Serving as a leader who is collaborative, confident, and a creative problem-solver.

Arlington County Government

Arlington County operates under the County Manager form of government. The five members of the County Board are elected at large to serve staggered, four-year terms. The County Manager works for the County Board and oversees County staff and day-to-day operations.
Services are provided by the County's 12 departments: Fire; Police; Public Safety Communications and Emergency Management; Environmental Services; Human Services; Economic Development; Community Planning, Housing and Development; Parks and Recreation; Management and Finance; Libraries; Human Resources; and Technology Services. Arlington County employs approximately 3,967 FTEs, and its total FY 2020 budget is $1.9 billion. The total General Fund budget is $799.8 million.

The Housing Division

The Housing Division has 23 FTEs and is focused on a comprehensive approach to meeting housing needs, which is vital for economic sustainability, diversity, and quality of life. Housing Arlington, a County Board initiative, kicked off this year and is led by the Housing Division. A new position, Housing Arlington Coordinator, was added to the Housing Division to help coordinate the Housing Arlington Initiative in this multi-department effort and reports directly to the Housing Director.

The Housing Development section (7 FTEs) supports affordable housing by working with developers to access the County's financing and zoning incentives. The County itself does not operate any housing units but works closely with partners in the community to provide and oversee these units.

The Housing Planning and Community Development section (8 FTEs) oversees the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), and HOME programs. It also oversees the five-year Consolidated Plan and the Annual Plan. It staffs a housing information center that provides information on a wide range of housing services, including tenant-landlord issues, fair housing, affordable housing, rental assistance, and first-time homebuyer programs.

The Housing Finance and Asset Management section (6 FTEs) supports a variety of programs to ensure housing choices for all income levels. The unit manages the Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF), a $350 million loan fund that provides gap financing for the development and/or renovation of long-term affordable housing by nonprofit and profit development partners. This year's annual allocation into the fund is $16 million. The program also provides monitoring and oversight of 8,300 income-restricted units.

The Housing Arlington Initiative is a County Board and Manager priority due to the importance that housing affordability plays in the County's ability to remain an equitable, stable, and adaptive community. As Arlington continues to grow in population and employment, its housing stock faces considerable pressure, particularly in its ability to house persons and families with low or fixed wages. People with stable jobs of moderate incomes struggle to move from renting to finding a suitable home to purchase. This led the County Board and Manager to create the Housing Arlington umbrella initiative, which includes six individual initiatives: Land Use Tools, including different forms and types of housing; Financial Tools; Institutional Partnerships; County Employee Housing; Condominium Initiative; and Affordable Housing Master Plan Update.

The Community
QUICK FACTS

• 2019 Population Estimate: 226,400
• 2019 Employment Estimate: 227,000
• 2017 Median Household Income: $112,138
• Median Home Value (owner-occupied): $643,300

Arlington County is situated across the Potomac River from the District of Columbia and is centrally located within the growing Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area. With 26 square miles, Arlington is the smallest, self-governing county in the nation and benefits from a civically-engaged population where residents and other stakeholders actively participate in decisions that shape the future of the community. The community's residential component is defined by transit-oriented, high-density development in its planning corridors, garden apartment and similarly scaled multi-family communities, and single-family neighborhoods. One-half of Arlington's residents live in the planning corridors, 65% of the housing stock is multi-family, and 60% of units are renter-occupied.

With 42 million square feet of rentable office space, Arlington has more private office space than many U.S. downtown and central business districts. One of the previously mentioned new companies coming to Arlington is Amazon. Amazon selected Arlington County from more than 200 competing communities as its home of a major new headquarters. Amazon's headquarters will comprise at least 4,000,000 square feet of office space in Arlington's Pentagon City and Crystal City areas. The company will invest more than $2 billion to establish its new headquarters, which will create at least 25,000 high wage jobs over the next 12 years.

Arlington's population is among the most highly-educated in the country. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2017 American Community Survey, 93.9 percent of all household residents age 25 and older were high school graduates, 74.1 percent were college graduates, and 39.4 percent had graduate or professional degrees. Arlington is also a diverse community, where students attending Arlington Public Schools hail from 147 nations and speak 112 languages. Arlington's households, which have maintained an average size of just over two persons, are also some of the highest-earning in the nation.

Selection Criteria

The successful candidate will have a Bachelor's Degree in business administration, economics, finance, marketing, planning, urban studies or related field, plus progressively responsible experience in housing policy and/or program administration that demonstrates a record of achievement in:

• Supervision/management in a multicultural workplace, local government, housing authority, or housing developer in an urbanized area;
• Housing policy development and implementation and knowledge of federal, state, and local housing programs;
• Working with volunteer commissions, elected officials, government and private sector partners (non-profit, for profit, and philanthropic);
• Knowledge of land use and financial tools to create affordable housing for a wide range of incomes;
• Building coalitions and consensus on difficult community issues;
• Strategic planning and implementation; and
• Finance and land use tools to achieve housing affordability.

Preferred candidates will also have:

• Master's Degree in business administration, economics, finance, marketing, planning, urban studies or related field.

Additional Information

Compensation The salary range is $101,15 - 197,163.20 depending on qualifications, with an excellent benefit package, generous telework policy, and family-friendly work environment.

As an Employer of Choice, Arlington County offers a generous benefit package. For additional benefits information

A comprehensive reference/background check will be completed, and employment will be contingent upon successful completion. Completion of the Commonwealth of Virginia Statement of Economic Interest form will be required of the successful candidate upon hire and annually thereafter.

How to Apply

Applications will be accepted electronically by The Novak Consulting Group. Apply at . Applicants complete a brief online form and are prompted to provide a cover letter and resume with salary history. Open until filled with the first review of applications on December 3, 2019.

Questions Please direct questions to Catherine Tuck Parrish at apply@thenovakconsultinggroup.com or 513-221-0500.