According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, we’re currently experiencing a national shortage of 4.5 million homes relative to demand. Other institutions, like the National Low Income Housing Coalition, report even more dire numbers, claiming a deficit of 7.1 million affordable housing units.
A lack of accessible and affordable housing doesn't just hurt prospective residents. It can destroy entire communities, slowing economic growth and causing the neglect and underutilization of community spaces and amenities.
Multifamily development — which is the construction, management, or ownership of residential properties that contain multiple separate housing units within a single building or a complex — may provide one solution for revitalizing neglected urban areas.
The multifamily development model can take many forms, including apartments, townhomes, condos, and mixed-use structures, all of which can have a measurable positive impact on property value, economic stability, public safety, and more.
Sometimes new multifamily developments face community pushback. However, data shows that thoughtfully designed multifamily housing can play a pivotal role in transforming underutilized urban areas into vibrant, equitable, and sustainable communities.
Understanding Community Revitalization
Sometimes, through no fault of its own, a community can fall into a state of disconnect, disrepair, and distress. Vibrant neighborhoods can slowly become neglected and dilapidated, causing long-term residents to divest and move away.
However, the process is reversible. Municipalities can bring these communities back to life with proper commitment and strategy.
What Is Community Revitalization?
Community revitalization is simply the reinvestment of capital and effort in aging or neglected urban areas. It's a critical strategy for supporting growth, resilience, and equity that benefits residents and the municipality.
Community revitalization projects encourage economic growth, improve infrastructure, promote social equity, and increase public safety. The ultimate goal is to create sustainable, diverse communities in which residents can take pride.
Key Indicators of Successful Revitalization
But what do revitalized communities look like? There are some key indicators that a community revitalization plan is having an effect:
- Improved public services and amenities
- New businesses and jobs
- Rising occupancy and property values
- Stronger sense of community
The Role of Multifamily Development in Urban Renewal
When considering how to revitalize a community, planning for housing is a must. Multifamily real estate development can provide a critical framework for growth that can pay dividends for decades.
Multifamily developments help stabilize population density and attract a local workforce, preventing workers from being priced out of the jobs they want and the areas they love.
Although many residents worry that increasing multifamily housing may negatively impact traffic, data shows it can have the opposite effect. Studies show increased population density supports walkability and transit-oriented development, improving resident satisfaction.
Rush Commercial completed Tacoma’s Hailey Apartments in 2021, helping to spark positive change in the surrounding community.
“This development, our third foreign direct investment project this year, will turn an underutilized City of Tacoma parking lot into a thriving community for approximately 300 people, with 34 affordable units and ground level retail amenities,” said previous Mayor of Tacoma, Marilyn Strickland. “Although not an EB-5 project, it is being financed completely with capital from the developer, and it will serve as a catalyst for further growth and investment in this area of our downtown core.”
“This development will bring in future mixed-use projects along Tacoma Avenue, filling parking lots and underdeveloped properties where public transit is available and major public institutions such as the Pierce County courthouse, Pierce County administrative offices and Tacoma Public Schools' headquarters are located," said Community and Economic Development Director Ricardo Noguera. "The project not only adds to the local tax base, it also adds around 90 full-time construction jobs, and will utilize local contractors and consultants from around the Puget Sound region."
New multifamily development also enables the growth of diverse mixed-income neighborhoods, creating safe, well-designed living spaces suitable for various lifestyles and needs.
Multifamily development companies have a unique opportunity to replace urban blight with purposeful beauty, transforming vacant lots, outdated buildings, and underused land into thoughtfully designed homes.
When developers act as new partners for community revitalization, they contribute to beautification and civic pride and provide real and measurable improvements to residents’ quality of life.
Social Impact: Building Stronger, More Equitable Communities
Multifamily developers can shape the future of communities through thoughtful design choices that support residents and provide proactive solutions to community issues.
Increasing Access to Quality Housing
Multifamily housing development pairs well with affordable and workforce housing initiatives. Understanding the community's needs allows developers to design buildings tailored to meet those needs, proactively solving issues like transit and accessibility.
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Rush Commercial recently partnered with Trent Development to build Rook Apartments in Tacoma’s thriving downtown. One significant project goal was to expand quality multifamily and affordable housing opportunities in that area, and Rook accomplished that by bringing to market 368 new units, including 74 affordable units covered by the City's multifamily property tax exemption program.
Inclusive development strategies like this one help reduce displacement and preserve neighborhood character, ensuring that new construction does not price out long-term residents.
Supporting Tenants With Services
Features like community pools or gyms are nothing new in multifamily housing developments. However, many newly built options now include access to a much wider variety of amenities like childcare, wellness clinics, or financial counseling.
Additionally, many multifamily communities offer regular community programming that fosters connection and upward mobility for residents. A thoughtful multifamily developer can help create long-term growth and sustainability through their offerings.
Creating Mixed-Use Spaces That Encourage Interaction
Communities are more than just places where we sleep and eat. They are a vital source of interaction and engagement, creating a sense of belonging and pride.
By designing communal spaces that encourage neighbor engagement, multifamily housing developers help build the social ties that keep communities strong. Mixed-use spaces integrating retail, parks, and cultural venues are critical for lasting communities.
Long-Term Economic and Civic Benefits
Multifamily housing development can substantially benefit local economies and positively impact public safety and civic opportunity. Increased population density creates compounding benefits and efficiencies for both residents and municipalities.
Attracting Local Investment and Small Business Growth
More people mean more consumers. The increased population density provided by multifamily housing boosts foot traffic and grows the available customer base.
In turn, this expanded consumer activity helps encourage new local business openings and creates additional jobs for residents, creating a positive feedback loop that drives exponential change and economic growth.
Generating Tax Revenue for Public Improvements
Multifamily housing’s impact on population density also helps generate tax revenue for public improvement.
One study conducted in Raleigh, North Carolina, that looked at the tax revenue per acre of different housing types showed that one acre dedicated to six-story, mixed-use multifamily and retail construction generated over $110,000 in tax revenue, while the same acreage of single-family residential homes generated only $2,800 in tax revenue. In general, higher-density housing like apartments or townhouses, which occupy less land per dwelling, will almost always generate more tax revenue per acre compared to single-family homes with larger lots.
Cities can use that extra tax money for school funding, transportation upgrades, and the construction or improvement of green spaces and public amenities that increase resident satisfaction and create value.
Tacoma has been actively promoting multifamily housing development to meet growing demand and enhance economic development. The city has implemented the Multifamily Property Tax Exemption (MFTE) Program, which offers tax incentives to developers building multifamily units in designated areas. This program aims to increase the housing stock and, by extension, the city's tax base.1
Additionally, Tacoma's "Home in Tacoma" initiative seeks to diversify housing options by allowing more types of housing in traditionally single-family neighborhoods. This approach is intended to increase residential density and, consequently, the potential for higher tax revenues per acre.2
Enhancing Safety and Civic Participation
Dense, multi-family housing also reduces the financial burden placed on public amenities and services like police, fire, and ambulance, making them more efficient and accessible. Some studies show an up to 10% reduction in the cost of delivering vital public services.
Increased reliability from emergency services enhances public safety. When residents feel safe, communities become more active and tightly knit, creating populations more likely to organize, vote, and care for their neighbors.
Rush Commercial: Your Partner in Purpose-Driven Construction
Multifamily development, when planned with the community in mind, is a powerful tool for revitalization. With the expert support of Rush Commercial, you can leverage this tool to generate real social and economic change.
Our team offers pre-construction services and construction management for commercial and multifamily projects. We’ve served the Pacific Northwest for over 38 years and understand that when you break ground on a multifamily housing project, you’re creating a community, not just a building.
We pride ourselves on creating beautiful, sustainable, community-focused multifamily projects that meet the needs of residents and act as pillars for revitalization efforts.
If you’re exploring a multifamily project with a community impact focus, contact our team today to find out how Rush Commercial can help you build an exceptional future, together.
1 Cranes and conversions: Multifamily housing booms in Pierce County. Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County. (2022, February 1). https://choosetacomapierce.org/news-events/cranes-and-conversions-multifamily-housing-booms-in-pierce-county, and Multifamily Property Tax Exemption (MFTE) Program. City of Tacoma. (2025, May 21). https://tacoma.gov/government/departments/community-and-economic-development/housing-division/tax-incentives/
2 Cockrell, D. (2022, February 25). Thousands of new apartments are on the way in Tacoma. Will they help bring down rents? The News Tribune. https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article257888713.html