Shifting Perspectives About Housing in Rural Communities: Scenario Planning for Housing Development

This toolkit aims to augment the literature of scenario planning and provides a process that small municipalities can replicate. Featuring cases in Hatfield and Amherst, Massachusetts—two rural communities in the Pioneer Valley that are struggling to meet local demand for housing—the toolkit demonstrates how a scenario planning process can be adapted for rural communities with staff and time constraints. 

In 2023, the Consortium for Scenario Planning supported four exploratory scenario planning (XSP) projects that address housing affordability challenges in communities from San Diego to Pittsburgh. The projects resulted in the development of toolkits that demonstrate how the scenario planning process was adapted in each of the four communities. The other toolkits can be accessed below:

Pathways for Affordable Housing Initiatives: A Community-Led Scenario Planning Toolkit

Housing Choices Game: A Scenario Planning Activity Toolkit

Triboro EcoHousing Futures: Scenario Planning for Housing Affordability and Resilience