Affordable Housing Questionnaire Responses: East County Candidates for City Council, 2021

I don’t know that I have a 10-year vision for affordable housing. The truth is, we can’t wait for 10 years to substantially and significantly address the housing crisis in Longmont. What I know is that we need to agree on a goal for development of attainable housing just like we did for affordable (subsidized) housing. We then need to utilize every single tool available to policy makers to pick up the pace to deliver housing stock to the Longmont market.

I believe that if people are trapped in low income affordable housing we aren’t doing a good job as a community. My aspiration is that we won’t need subsidized housing because we’ve educated and re-skilled low income individuals so they no longer need assistance. The way we do this is increase the rate of home ownership by increasing the stock of affordable housing in the 250K-350K range. This can be done through increasing housing density and potentially implementing deed restrictions requiring the residence is owner occupied.

Longmont will have a stable inventory of rental and for-sale housing stock at all (sensible) affordability levels so residents can progress through their lives matching their style and size of residence to their present needs. Most deed-restricted rental stock will be subsidized and permanently affordable. Deed-restricted for-sale housing should be kept to a minimum, because it is difficult for working families to build wealth in deed-restricted properties. Instead, we must emphasize styles of market housing that do not appeal to the well-to-do past a certain point in their life journey. Edgy, urban neighborhood-centered high-density multifamily buildings will appeal to young singles and couples but the value will be in the neighborhood more than in the dwelling. The transition to suburban life will appeal to some but not all. Well-designed transit options will have led to a large reduction in automobile use in the city center.

My 10 year vision for affordable housing in Longmont, is that we build back the inventory we lost in 2009 when the affordable housing requirement was removed by the city council. I feel that the only way of doing that is to increase the percentage that we ask of all new development. We need to take a much more aggressive stance. I explain this in some of the other questions that you ask in your questionnaire.

My idea is simple on the affordable home goal for Longmont. I would love for Longmont to look at the tiny home that the VA has done for the homeless vets. That would be a sustainable community that could provide a lot of resources for everyone

Living in Longmont has never been more expensive. We need real solutions, not just rhetoric. This means looking closely at our codes and policies to find ways to increase inventory and access.

The city of Longmont must continue to support the Longmont Housing Authority. The Longmont Housing Authority has provided more affordable housing units than any other entity when it comes to the city of Longmont. Outside of merely supporting the LHA, the city should encourage the expansion of the mission to include more units for families, single adults, and those in need of permanent supportive housing. The city should also research and set a baseline for the number of workforce/attainable units lacking in the city. There needs to be a holistic approach to housing that ensures that anyone in need of housing will be able to attain it.

Longmont would have a diverse inventory of housing which would include pre-fab, container homes, tiny homes, conventional homes, paired homes, townhouses, condominiums and market value homes, all for purchase, hopefully not rental. 12% of all homes will be permanently affordable for 30 years with a re-sale cap of 10% or more below market value. Rentals near transit stations with robust public transportation. ADA compliant single-family homes and rentals. Reducing the monthly financial output of residents by installing solar gardens in neighborhoods to allow energy to come from solar rather than electricity. Creating a local public transportation system to reduce the need for a car. Removing the sale tax on essential food items. Creating child care close to home or work to reduce child care costs.

Allowing current homeowners to build dwelling units over their garage or in their back yard it would increase the number of units available for low-income renters, without adding to urban sprawl , often would be at a lower price point than a unit would cost in a large apartment complex. In addition, Louisville has a long history of residents building and renting accessory units on their property during the early years of Louisville when the coal mining industry was driving the economy, so this is not a new concept for the city.

I have been proud to support efforts to make affordable housing more available in Louisville. I led efforts to introduce the inclusionary zoning ordinance that passed council this summer. Our new ordinance sets a requirement that new developments have 12% affordable housing. I would like to see this ordinance improved in the future to require a larger percentage of affordable housing. I would also like our policies to include requirements that a certain percentage of affordable housing be affordable for people who make less than 60% of area median income. Louisville should use proceeds from payments developers make to the city in lieu of affordable housing to make additional affordable housing available in our community..

I believe it's fair and achievable. The lack of affordable housing is a regional challenge, and Boulder County communities agreed to tackle it together. It is up to each of them to reach the 12% goal in its own way based on community values, geography, and land use policies. I was Louisville's representative to the Boulder County Consortium of Cities, whose members studied affordable housing, supported the development of the 12% affordable housing goal, and then championed it to convince their respective municipalities to support it. I am proud to say that all seven Louisville City Councilmembers were at the affordable housing summit at which the goal was presented. I am equally proud of my colleagues that, shortly afterward, the Council unanimously adopted that goal.

Having a goal is important in order to give the City something to measure accomplishments against and remind changing Councils to keep taking steps to develop affordable housing. That was the intent of the Council who established this goal. Most of us agree that if 12% of all housing in Lafayette is affordable to people who are low- to moderate-income, we are not meeting the need, considering 25% of all Boulder County residents are housing cost burdened (spending 50% or more of their monthly income on housing costs).

After speaking with some current city council members, I think that this is a well thought out and achievable goal. We have some great projects currently in the pipeline including the Willoughby Corner development which will provide over 400 permanently affordable homes to the city. Personally, I think that a proposal in conjunction with the Planning and Development department to further incentivise developers to build affordable housing rather than things like luxury apartments would be very beneficial.

Our city will begin to lose diversity, culture & amazing perspectives if we do not create & protect affordable housing. I really want to see more owner affordable housing. As in folks have an opportunity to purchase an affordable home that will be their home for life. I like affordable housing rentals, but folks have such a stringer sense of security, sense of place etc. when that home is actually their home.

Having served on the Planning Commission I have seen many residential developments come before the city and based on my experience the city should draft a guiding document on how we as a community will address affordable housing. It is a very complex topic and I believe the first step to move the city forward is to look at a housing specialist on city staff. This position has been placed into the 2022 budget which passed on first reading last night.