This toolkit provides planners and other public sector staff with creative, approachable public engagement materials for conversations about housing. The goal of these resources is to help staff lay the foundation for conversations about long term housing goals by establishing a shared vocabulary for all ages and encouraging residents to explore community values and opportunities.
See ABAG’s Housing, Density, and Design Resources for further community engagement tools explaining housing, density and rezoning concepts.
On this webpage you’ll find:
- Welcome Home! book in English and Spanish.
- Public engagement posters.
- Coloring pages and bookmarks.
- Social media assets.
- Slide deck template.
- Asset library and video meeting backgrounds.
- Printing specifications for each resource.
Welcome Home! Housing in Our Community Book
This book is a fully illustrated, 32-page picture book designed for broad accessibility. It explains and illustrates concepts like density, zoning and affordability. It is available in both Spanish and English, with multiple file types and instructions for easy printing.
- Print version in English.
- Print version in Spanish.
- Digital version in English.
- Digital version in Spanish.
Note: open in a PDF reader like Acrobat to view correct layout instead of opening in a browser window.
Public Engagement Posters
Four posters summarizing housing concepts with full-color illustrations. The posters prompt viewers to explore how planning shapes their own neighborhoods and their shared community values. These can be shared in libraries, schools, community centers, and jurisdiction buildings. Includes instructions for easy printing.
Coloring Pages and Bookmarks
Fifteen coloring pages and four bookmarks designed for artists and readers of all ages. Offer these at meetings and engagement events for community members young and old who benefit from more interactive activities. Coloring pages and bookmarks encourage users to explore housing and planning in their communities.
Social Media Assets
Five animated GIFs and suggested template text that can be used across social media and other digital outreach platforms to encourage community education and engagement. Images are colorful and inviting, and text prompts readers to explore housing in their communities and engage with other Welcome Home! resources.
Slide Deck Template and Video Meeting Backgrounds
A template slide deck and nine video meeting backgrounds using illustrations from the Welcome Home! book. These can be used for public meetings and community engagement activities to highlight shared community values and present conversations with a welcoming and accessible tone.
Asset Library
A library of 148 images from the Welcome Home! book for use in local engagement materials. Use of these images is encouraged to help connect complex planning concepts with familiar and inviting scenarios from the everyday lives of your community. Images include a variety of building types, people, landscapes, transportation types, and even pets!
Click this link to download the Asset library. To download the entire zip file of images, then click the download icon on the upper-right hand corner of the screen. The zip file will download to your computer, and you can open it to access the files inside.