Upper Darby seeks public input to shape 5-year housing plan

Upper Darby Township is formulating a plan that will guide its housing and community development strategy for the next five years — and it needs locals’ help.

The township’s five-year consolidated plan, which will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, is a comprehensive planning document and application for funding that helps entitlement communities assess their affordable housing and community development needs.

The plan also evaluates market conditions to make “data-driven, place-based investment decisions” and serves as blueprint for the expenditures of federal HUD funds in Upper Darby Township from Oct. 1, 2026, to Sept. 30, 2031.

But before the township can draw up its five-year consolidated plan, it first wants the public to complete a survey that will help officials identify the housing and community development needs of low- to moderate-income households and people with special needs such as disabilities, substance misuse disorders, behavioral and physical health challenges, and the elderly.

The survey solicits input from stakeholders such as township residents, local businesses, social service providers, public agencies and community organizations. In one question, the survey asks about the presence/accessibility of assets like affordable childcare, public transit and shelters for people experiencing homelessness in the survey-taker’s community. It also asks a question seeking to gauge what type of housing should be built in Upper Darby, such as townhomes, apartment buildings or single-family homes.

Those interested in taking the survey have until March 27 to do so, and the township will publicly display its draft five-year consolidated plan around July 1.