Tempe YIMBY

WHAT IS TEMPE YIMBY?

YIMBY stands for “Yes In My Backyard”. Our goal is to create a Tempe for everyone. This means building abundant housing in Tempe to end our housing shortage, so that anyone can afford to live here.

We want Tempe to be affordable in other ways as well, with jobs closer to where people live, and a focus on improving walkability and transit options.

WE SUPPORT:

• Expanding Tempe’s housing stock by allowing currently prohibited housing types like backyard casitas¹, small-lot starter homes, and middle housing (think duplexes, and townhomes) across Tempe.
• Increasing the construction of subsidized affordable housing. We support increasing funding for affordable housing while streamlining existing procedural barriers that limit the construction of new affordable homes.
• Building more housing near jobs and transit. We have failed to add enough homes to keep up with job growth in Tempe. This forces workers to live outside the city and commute longer distances, increasing traffic, sprawl, and pollution. We should build more housing near jobs, services, and transit.

Additionally, we recognize that statewide solutions are needed to solve a statewide housing crisis. Cities can play a key role in advancing pro-housing policy, but the housing market is not constrained by municipal borders.

We advocate for common-sense statewide reforms that will create guardrails against the exclusionary and restrictive zoning policies that have created the affordable housing crisis we see today.

CONTACT US

You can reach us by email at [email protected].

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, BlueSky, and Twitter.

FRIENDS

• LOCAL
  • Tempe Bicycle Action Group – Bike advocacy in Tempe.
    • Open Streets Tempe
  • Urban Phoenix Project – Our urbanist Phoenix friends.
  • YIMBY Maricopa – Advocating for housing across Maricopa County.
  • Main Street Mesa – Mesa-focused content promoting people-centered city design.
  • Chandler YIMBY – A fledgling YIMBY group with much the same mission as our own.
• ARIZONA
  • Arizona Neighborhood Project – A statewide group advocating for pro-housing legislation in Arizona.
  • Tucson for Everyone – The Tucson chapter of YIMBY Action.
  • Livable Flagstaff – Advocating for an affordable, multimodal, and sustainable Flagstaff

1. ADUs (casitas) are now legal citywide thanks to statewide legislation and the work of pro-housing advocates like yourself. ↩︎

OUR LATEST

• The 2026 Tempe Housing Voter Guide
• 2026 Tempe City Council Housing Questionnaire
• Tempe Proposes Affordable Housing Bonus Program