First, "Workforce Housing" is a relatively new catch-phrase that has overtaken "Low-Income Housing Project" (with its associated connotations).

However, there is a much better phrase that reflects a new vision of "housing".

That phrase is "Sustainable Community Design". This phrase illustrates that "housing" is just one part of what makes a community viable and sustainable.

Sustainability in this context can be defined as:

The ability to provide for the needs of the community without damaging the ability of future generations to provide for themselves. When a process is sustainable, it can be carried out over and over without negative environmental effects or impossibly high costs to anyone involved.

This concept is vitally important to a discussion of housing for several reasons:

It is important to understand that "affordable housing" is not affordable if it is not tied in to the local community and economy.

Housing is not affordable or sustainable if its occupants must drive far out of the community to find employment. Similarly, local employment is not sustainable if employees must come from far outside of the community to fill those positions.

Community members who have to travel long distances for employment are less likely to engage in the community - as volunteer rescue squad and firefighter members, school mentors, and in other civic opportunities. They are less likely to simply "have the time."

A drive through the suburban sprawl of northern Virginia will illustrate these points. The end result of poor planning in those areas is terrible traffic congestion, poor air quality, and a diminished "quality of life" for all involved.