Jamestown Director of Development Crystal Surdyk talks to City Council Housing Committee (September 11, 2023)
The City of Jamestown is looking at modular homes as a way to possibly bring in new housing stock to the city.
Director of Development Crystal Surdyk said there’s plenty of housing in the city but not “great quality housing stock,” “There’s a lot of work that needs to be done on what we have. Which, we know that and are working on things, different programs and projects, to address those. But, that said, we are also working on, and we’ve been in conversations with the company Module, which is a modular home builder, a smaller footprint house.”
Surdyk said the average size of homes by Module is 1,200 square feet. She said the Department of Development has been working with Module and the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities on a possible pilot project, “To do some in-fill with those smaller footprint houses. And then looking at some areas where we have selected to do some targeted demolitions and looking at those as potential areas to do a pilot program as well.”
Surdyk said while the City’s current zoning is prohibitive when it comes to tiny houses, New York State Residential Building Code does allow for them.
The city will be undergoing a zoning code and comprehensive plan update. Surdyk said she hopes to put that project out to bid in the near future.
Doesn’t Jamestown have a glut of housing? Wouldn’t it make more sense to fix up what’s there? That would provide jobs, wouldn’t it?
1) Module’s 1,200sq ft homes begin at $155,000.
2) The NYS 2029 Residential Code, Appendix Q, defines a “tiny home” as being 400 sq ft or less,
3) I don’t think Jamestown participates in the NYS “Plus One ADU Program” that provides up to $125,000 for tiny home development. I could be wrong but Jamestown isn’t shown on the list.
4) If homeownership isn’t the secondary goal, in this housing initiative, then the City isn’t taking a holistic approach to the problems facing the city.
Excuse the typo: “2020 Residential Code…”