Buncombe County’s goal of increasing affordable housing is getting a boost with the hiring of a Housing Bond Manager. After an extensive search, the County is excited to name Chloe Donohoe to the position that will oversee the recently approved $40 million housing bond. “It is critical that all members of our community, from teachers to law enforcement officers to the cashiers at our local grocery stores, have access to the safety and security that housing provides,” explains Assistant County Manager Sybil Tate. “Chloe has successfully worked with community groups to tackle complex problems, using her ability to do in-depth research and collaboratively develop thoughtful solutions. She also has the skills to conduct the financial analysis necessary to evaluate affordable housing projects.”
Chloe says her graduate studies focused on how housing affects health outcomes, and it’s a policy area she’s passionate about. “When I first read the Affordable Housing Bond position posting, I found that I really connected to the job description, especially the potential to leverage my project management background and newly minted planning education to expand access to affordable housing for Buncombe County’s residents,” she says. And she’ll get the chance to hit the ground running as Commissioners are looking to include $13 million of the bond funds to begin building nearly 350 affordable housing units in the upcoming fiscal year, which starts July 1, 2023. The overall goal is to help with upward of 3,100 affordable housing units in the next seven years with construction of low- and moderate-income homes being an immediate goal. “In the longer term, we aim to utilize bond funds to invest in projects that address additional County affordable housing goals, particularly around supporting homeownership,” says Chloe.
As the housing bond projects start to progress, the Board of County Commissioners created a committee of community-based financial experts to oversee bond investments. The goals of the committee are to help increase transparency, ensure proper use of bond funds, and bolster communication between the County and the public. “Therefore, the Affordable Housing Bond provides the County with a financial mechanism to respond to the needs expressed by our residents, while also assuring public trust in the uses of such funds through community oversight and transparency measures,” explains Chloe. To learn more about the housing bond, click here.
Chloe Donohoe’s professional bio
Before joining Buncombe County, Chloe worked in both local government and state health and resilience policy in North Carolina, building skills in project management, coalition-building, and grant administration. She has had the opportunity to support and lead cross-departmental projects focused on improving local responses to behavioral health crises, identifying state health goals strategies, and evaluating the practices and processes of a state-led regional resilience program. Chloe received BAs in Public Health Studies and Environmental Studies from Elon University and her MA in City and Regional Planning and MPH in Health Behavior from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.