18 Distillation Guidebook Co-Lab • 9.18–9.19 2025 What is Changing? What Needs to Change? Affordability showed the greatest fluctuation: low change often reflected the slow pace of new housing production, while higher change signaled the acceleration of the issue or rapid gentrification that worsens the crisis. Across themes, participants consistently pointed to limited capacity to act. Single-family zoning received low change scores due to the lack of opportunities to increase density, while blighted properties and diverse housing types also showed little change, indicating that redevelopment and new construction are not keeping pace with need. Even where housing diversity is valued, participants felt that not enough is being built. Low change scores reflect a shared frustration with inadequate housing production and the limited ability to respond effectively to the housing crisis. Change in housing conditions across small cities is context-dependent, but consistently constrained. Participants’ assessments of “change” varied based on whether they were discussing rising pressures from the housing crisis or the ability to respond or produce the housing they value.
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