Summit

2nd Annual Housing to Protect Cape Cod Summit

More than 300 state and local officials, business leaders and community advocates gathered Oct. 26 at the Cape Codder in Hyannis for the second annual Housing to Protect Cape Cod (HPCC) Summit. Attendees heard about progress made since the HPCC coalition was launched in 2022 and received tools and resources to continue to advocate for housing in their communities.

Featured speakers included Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities Edward Augustus, State Senator Julian Cyr, Housing Assistance CEO Alisa Magnotta, Cape Cod Commission Executive Director Kristi Senatori, Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce CEO Paul Niedzwiecki, town officials, and housing advocates from around the region.

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll made a surprise appearance via Zoom. “The Cape is the canary in the coal mine,” she said. “You’re seeing firsthand the impacts of housing on the economy. We have to have more affordable housing in the region.”

Augustus spoke about the Healey-Driscoll administration’s Affordable Homes Act, a $4 billion plan to jumpstart the production of homes and make housing more affordable across Massachusetts. The housing bill includes a comprehensive package of spending, policy and programmatic actions, and represents the largest proposed investment in housing in the state’s history.

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“If we’re in a housing crisis, and we are, we need to be thinking big and we need to be thinking bold,” said Augustus. “We can do better. It’s our moral responsibility to do better.”

Policy Toolkit

Resources unveiled at the Summit included a policy toolkit with specific policy recommendations to promote housing. The toolkit provides a high-level overview of the recommendations and local examples to illustrate the benefits of the suggested changes.

See Toolkit