With the local city council election in November, those candidates for the Flagstaff City Council who will appear on the ballot have been given the chance to answer a weekly question in no more than 150 words.
This week鈥檚 question: What steps should Flagstaff take to address affordable housing?
Council
Dennis Givens
The supply of homes is low, and the demand for them is high in Flagstaff causing unaffordable housing. When the supply is high, and the demand is low, things get a little better. The city of Flagstaff is creating a supply of housing by developing 4,000 dwelling units off the newly constructed JW Powell Boulevard, Fourth Street, Butler Avenue and Lake Mary Road. The city also needs to eliminate barriers to smaller, modest, more affordable housing. It is part of the 10-year housing plan and will get rid of regulatory barriers that make small infill development difficult. Things like reducing street widths, allowing smaller homes on smaller lots and less parking will make room for more housing. Having proper oversight of the housing bond is important, this is referring to the $20 million raise by Prop. 402, for various housing subsidies; making sure this money is effective for affordable housing.
Miranda Sweet
HUD defines affordable housing as housing that a household can afford if they pay no more than 30% of their gross income on housing costs, including utilities. Housing conditions are at a critical level, and Flagstaff has worked to create nationally recognized innovations. The re-development of three hotels for transitional housing through Housing Solutions and Flagstaff Shelter Services has been crucial in providing temporary housing with supportive services to those experiencing homelessness. I helped foster a partnership with the Starter Home program from Habitat for Humanity and the developers of Timber Sky, providing entry level home ownership opportunities, breaking ground on a 40-Starter Home neighborhood in the Timber Sky neighborhood. My focus is to not only tackle the HUD definition of affordable housing, but to keep working to address all levels on the housing continuum by utilizing incentives, working on streamlining city codes and permits, and lobbying for more state funding.
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First, it is important to acknowledge that housing affordability is a national problem.
As the Federal Reserve brings interest rates down, housing will become somewhat more affordable. However, Flagstaff will continue to have a housing affordability problem as demand for affordable housing exceeds supply. In Flagstaff we should look carefully at zoning codes to see if more multi-family homes can be built, e.g. duplexes, townhomes or apartment complexes instead of single family homes. There may be places in Flagstaff where a greater density of housing units is permitted. Flagstaff should also encourage the construction of Alternative Dwelling Units (ADU鈥檚), smaller housing units that are separate but apart of existing houses or lots. And, the City Council should support the current housing plan, written by the Housing Commission. Flagstaff can also look at successful housing solutions implemented in other communities to see if they can be applied to Flagstaff.
Amethyst Deasy
I would like to see the city take steps to address affordable housing particularly in the area of home ownership. We have fallen massively short of addressing the availability of reasonable, affordable homes. It seems that most everything being built are large apartment complexes or expensive, luxury homes. I would like to see neighborhoods that offer starter homes or affordable homes, townhouses or duplexes with yards that are far more fitting of the character of Flagstaff. We need to fully review the housing incentives of the city that, in my opinion, have not provided the intended results, and are not incentivizing the types of development we would like to see. We should also continue to partner with our local non-profits to support small scale development of open lots in town such as the Habitat for Humanity homes on Butler.
Anthony Garcia
Housing is healthcare. I will be working diligently to create a path to homeownership for those suffering from housing insecurities at every level. Addressing housing insufficiencies holistically is a key component in solving this issue.
I believe redesigning our current city owned housing projects is a great place to start. Siler, Brannen and Clark homes can increase their housing stock by 300% with my vision of redevelopment. I will be lobbying Federal funding to help this process at every opportunity.
Additionally, promoting city owned land trust development on more than 30 acres that I鈥檝e identified is another actionable step leading us out of our current housing crisis.
I鈥檒l help connect all social service providers together in a way that can support folks in need, to navigate the process more effectively.
As a council member, my vision is to create an economic environment where better paying jobs contribute to housing affordability.
David Spence
I found inspiration on this question at Epiphany's worship this weekend. The prayer was, "Redeem the destructive and stir in us the creative."
One destructive factor is "not in my backyard" (NIMBY), homeowners of expensive homes impeding approval of lower cost housing. The current analysis and revision of zoning regulations should address this factor. Another destructive element is short stay vacation rentals that subtract from the housing stock for locals: requires legislative changes.
The creative actions include the following: Support (regulatory and financial) for the non-profits working on affordable housing (Habitat for Humanity, Community Townsite Historic Trust, and Housing solutions of Northern Arizona). Enable Co-Housing when requested. Tiny home developments. Accessory Dwelling Units, actively being developed by city staff. RV Parks. Mobile home parks. Manufactured home developments. Apartment complexes.
I will work with City Housing staff to survey existing rentals (rates, utilization and eligibility) to guide future development.
Mayor
Becky Daggett
Our community has created affordable rental housing utilizing tax credits, federal rescue plan money, and funding through HUD. In the near term, hundreds of such units will be created and this will relieve some pressure on Flagstaff鈥檚 rental market. The recent housing bond will be allocated to four project areas, including combining bond funding and several other sources to renovate and add units in all publicly owned housing. The city has a land trust鈥攃ity-owned land under a long-term lease. This removes the land cost and the housing maintains its affordability when resold鈥攊n this aspect it鈥檚 similar to Habitat for Humanity鈥檚 forthcoming starter homes. There are fewer public dollars available for owner-occupied housing, but the city offers down payment assistance and is examining codes and policies to ensure they have their intended result. Flagstaff needs authority from the Legislature to require affordable housing in private development.