We looked at a bunch of different platforms, and PolicyMap was the standout. It was a great tool for staff to be able to do their own analysis quickly and easily.
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Challenge
Connecticut Housing Finance Authority CHFA) works to alleviate the shortage of housing for low- to moderate-income families and persons in Connecticut. To communicate the impact of their investments, staff relied on analysts and complex GIS software. As requests for data pulls, quick maps, and reports grew, CHFA needed a solution for making community housing information more accessible to anyone in the organization. Staff needed the ability to explore specific geographies, perform their own impact analysis, and geocode information based on legislative districts for meetings with state legislators, community partners, and municipal planners.
Solution
CHFA partnered with PolicyMap to create their Impact Map, an illustration of their investments and results across the state of Connecticut. The interactive tool gives both staff and public users the opportunity to learn about housing and other community characteristics using their own program data alongside data from the census and other public sources—no GIS training required. Reports and analysis can be completed in minutes. Now staff generates on-the-fly, custom reports for the U.S. Congressional Districts, State, Senate and House Districts, Counties, Municipalities and Census Tracts throughout the state. Public users can explore CHFA programs and census data in their community via the housing finance authority’s website as well.CHFA also used PolicyMap to strengthen their application to the Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF). The HAF is a $9.9 billion federal program to help households who are behind on their mortgages and other housing-related expenses due to the impacts of COVID-19.