Panel examines rising housing costs and affordability challenges in Adams County

A panel discussion hosted by Gettysburg DFA on Tuesday evening highlighted rising housing costs and growing affordability challenges in Adams County, as dozens of local advocates and residents gathered to discuss housing insecurity and homelessness.

The event, titled “Housing insecurity: Tracking homelessness and housing affordability at the local level,” featured speakers Leon Reed, who chaired the session, @Home Coordinator Alana Anderson, and Bill Gilmartin, chairman of the Adams County Housing Authority board. The panel explored the economic forces driving housing costs and discussed possible approaches to expanding affordable housing in the county.

Anderson shared data showing how dramatically housing prices have risen in recent years.

“Last year our median home sale price was about $353,000,” Anderson said. “We’ve had a 91 percent increase since 2015.”

Those increases, she said, mean many residents are increasingly priced out of the housing market. Think about the people who are being left behind — whose incomes have not increased at the same rate,” she said.

Anderson also described her own experience with housing instability while living in California, where she struggled to afford rent on a two-bedroom apartment.

“We could not afford a $3,200-a-month apartment,” she said. “If my parents hadn’t opened their doors, the reality would have been much bleaker.”

Having family support allowed her to move home and regroup, she said, but many people do not have that option.

Anderson urged residents to become involved in local land-use discussions and planning decisions.

“Please participate,” she said, encouraging people to attend planning commission and zoning hearing board meetings and to engage with organizations working on housing issues.

Reed said Adams County faces additional pressures because of its aging population and the type of housing that will be needed in the coming decades.

“Adams County is not ready” for the expected growth in the number of senior residents, Reed said, noting that more housing options will be needed for older adults who want to downsize or remain in their communities as they age.

He also said community resistance to higher-density housing can make it difficult to create new affordable options. “The general perspective of the area was, ‘We don’t want small houses,’” Reed said.

Gilmartin discussed the role of the Adams County Housing Authority in providing housing assistance and managing public housing.

The authority currently serves about 900 households, he said, but demand continues to exceed available resources.

“Nationally, one constant is we only serve about one out of four people who are eligible,” Gilmartin said, noting that federal housing assistance programs such as Section 8 vouchers are limited by funding.

Housing affordability is often measured by how much of a household’s income goes toward housing costs. Anderson said recent data shows a large share of residents are spending more than the recommended level.

“Seventy-four percent of renters are spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing,” she said.

Panelists also pointed to broader forces shaping the local housing market. Construction costs have increased sharply in recent years, while Adams County’s desirability and limited land available for development further constrain housing supply.

“Housing construction costs have skyrocketed,” Reed said.

Despite the challenges, speakers emphasized that community engagement and local policy decisions will play an important role in shaping the county’s housing future.

“We need to have conversations about what kind of community we want,” Anderson said.

A question-and-answer session and a conversation hour followed the presentations.