[Summit] Public input requested - City Comprehensive Housing Strategy

Mon Jan 4 19:38:46 UTC 2021

summit
so a zoning change would be a NO cost step in the right direction
well no cost except for lobbying

On Mon, Jan 4, 2021 at 12:00 PM Ethan Gyles <ethangy at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi Mrs. B,
>
> I think you're right. And that type of housing would help young renters
> getting started too. One significant roadblock is large swaths of the East
> Side are zoned to not allow multi-family construction. Check out the zoning
> map at the link below, and look at how much of the East Side is currently
> R-1 and R-1A zones (which means the only thing allowed is single family
> houses -- whereas R-2 means a two-family is allowed, R-3 means
> three-family, and R-4 means four and up (e.g. multifamily, apartment
> buildings, etc.)):
> ftp://ftp.providenceplanning.org/ProvGIS/Map_Gallery/Zoning/Official%20Zoning%20Maps%2018.04.20.pdf
>
> Also, a lot of zoning law historically in our country has roots in racism.
> When courts said you can't exclude people from housing by race, excluding
> by housing type was a useful proxy. Recommended reading:
> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32191706-the-color-of-law
>
> Ethan
>
> On Mon, Jan 4, 2021 at 11:41 AM Breslers <breslerfamily at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> We were already forced out of our 20+ years apartment in Providence by
>> prices
>> and upscaling to benefit from that market
>> Wanting to remain in our religious community, we managed to find a place
>> in Oak Hill
>> under a mile away.
>> Our solution was the existence of a SMALL place for sale.
>> But even that was a big stretch many folks would not have been able to
>> handle.
>>
>> Although all sorts of creative ideas to help with housing costs are
>> welcome
>> the simplest solution is to make MUCH more smaller, naturally lower cost
>> options available
>> We need to build LOTS of both efficiency & 1 bedroom apartments &
>> apartment type condos
>> and duplexes & townhouse condos 600 -1000 square feet.
>> (Building such small homes individually is not so cost effective to build
>> or heat.)
>> Those choices will also help compete with and lower the prices of the
>> larger stuff.
>>
>> This is especially necessary with a growing demographic of older couples
>> & older singles with fixed incomes
>> A lot of people in this group, that I know, have completely left the
>> state.
>> We are losing our living history & wisdom.
>>
>> Mrs B
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Jan 4, 2021 at 10:59 AM Ethan Gyles <ethangy at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi neighbors,
>>>
>>> The SNA Board will draft a public response for the following, which we
>>> successfully lobbied for a public input deadline extension on. We welcome
>>> input from neighbors on this - please send to SNAProv at gmail.com. Please
>>> send to us *by 1/13*. You're also, of course, welcome and encouraged to
>>> directly submit individual input, by 1/19.
>>>
>>> The SNA Board is acutely aware of the sharply increasing housing prices
>>> in our neighborhood, while Rhode Island incomes have been slower to grow,
>>> and how that creates a higher and higher barrier to entry to new families
>>> and may displace others, including renters. Many residents - my own family
>>> included, actually - would no longer be able to afford to become a
>>> first-time home buyer in our neighborhood. We're eager to participate in a
>>> process toward fair and equitable solutions.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>> Ethan
>>>
>>> *City of Providence Charts Bold New Course for Affordable Housing*
>>>
>>> *This month, the City of Providence unveiled the City’s
>>> Anti-Displacement and Comprehensive Housing Strategy (the Strategy) and
>>> first-ever City Affordable Housing Bond. As COVID-19 amplifies the critical
>>> housing needs facing Providence residents, the City’s comprehensive housing
>>> plan builds an actionable 10-year road map for policy recommendations, new
>>> programs and housing investments. Key findings outlined in the plan
>>> include:*
>>>
>>>    - *Providence households are cost-burdened*
>>>    - *The City’s older housing stock creates challenges *
>>>    - *Extremely low-Income households are underserved*
>>>    - *Housing choice and type are limited in several areas of the City*
>>>
>>> *The key findings reflect Providence’s diverse housing ecosystem and the
>>> varying needs of renters, homeowners, landlords, developers, and community
>>> members. They helped shape the programmatic, policy, and regulatory
>>> approaches the City will take to advance affordable housing, including:*
>>>
>>>    - *Identifying new financial resources to invest in Providence’s
>>>    existing housing stock to preserve and enhance its affordability and
>>>    quality.*
>>>    - *Building upon collaborative partnerships to leverage existing
>>>    housing resources with new funding sources in targeted areas to accomplish
>>>    shared goals of safe and healthy housing, increased prosperity for all
>>>    residents, and improved quality of life citywide.*
>>>    - *Encouraging price diversity in all new housing construction
>>>    through incentive programs that both ease the cost development and create
>>>    safer, affordable units in underserved areas.*
>>>    - *Implementing innovative regulatory changes and new policies to
>>>    allow for creative housing solutions including increased homeownership,
>>>    more robust rehabilitation of existing housing, incremental density in
>>>    areas close to transit and job centers and reducing displacement of
>>>    long-term Providence residents.*
>>>
>>> *A full overview of recommended policy and programmatic changes,
>>> including recommended funding strategies, is available in the draft
>>> report, here
>>> <http://www.providenceri.gov/planning/comprehensive-housing-strategy/>.*
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> *As the City anticipates the release of the Anti-Displacement and
>>> Comprehensive Housing Strategy, the public is encouraged to review the
>>> draft report and provide comments over the next 30 days. The City will
>>> integrate community feedback into the final plan, to be released in early
>>> 2021. For more information about the Strategy—including how to submit
>>> feedback—visit the City’s website, here
>>> <http://www.providenceri.gov/planning/comprehensive-housing-strategy/>. For
>>> more information & to read the full press release, please click here
>>> <https://www.providenceri.gov/city-providence-charts-bold-new-course-affordable-housing/>.
>>> *
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Summit mailing list
>>> Summit at sna.providence.ri.us
>>> http://sna.providence.ri.us/mailman/listinfo/summit_sna.providence.ri.us
>>> SNA Website: http://sna.providence.ri.us/
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> FISHEL BRESLER'S KLEZMER & HASSIDIC MUSIC -
>> *funded in part by a Folk Arts Fellowship grant from the RI State Council
>> on the Arts*.
>> www.LinkedIn.com/in/FishelBresler
>> _______________________________________________
>> Summit mailing list
>> Summit at sna.providence.ri.us
>> http://sna.providence.ri.us/mailman/listinfo/summit_sna.providence.ri.us
>> SNA Website: http://sna.providence.ri.us/
>>
>

-- 
FISHEL BRESLER'S KLEZMER & HASSIDIC MUSIC -
*funded in part by a Folk Arts Fellowship grant from the RI State Council
on the Arts*.
www.LinkedIn.com/in/FishelBresler
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://sna.providence.ri.us/pipermail/summit_sna.providence.ri.us/attachments/20210104/8e57961a/attachment.htm>