|
Recently, Housing Action asked Council candidates to give us thier views on expanding housing
choice in Alexandria. Read their responses below, which will be posted as received. A complete list of the questions follows.
Tim Lovain (D), 2/17/06
Andrew Macdonald (D), 3/1/06
Rob Krupicka (D), 3/1/06
Redella S. "Del" Pepper (D), 3/2/06
Paul C. Smedberg (D), 3/6/06
Townsend "Van" Van Fleet (R), 3/7/06
Craig Miller (R), 3/8/06
Ludwig Gaines (D), 3/9/06
Ken Foran (R), 3/10/06
Bernie Schulz (R), 4/26/06
Workforce Housing Questions
Workforce Housing is housing that is affordable to the range of persons we Alexandrians rely upon for our necessary government, nonprofit, and business and commercial services.
1. Priority. How important is workforce housing to Alexandria and to you? What steps do you see as critical to maintaining a range of housing options?
2. Targets and Tools. Housing Action has requested that City staff creates an Action Plan for housing, with numerical preservation and new unit targets, administrative/staff changes, and the creation of a “YES” team to get the job done. Arlington has one and Fairfax is creating one. The City has not responded. Will you support a plan and implementation tools, and how will you get City staff to implement it?
3. Accountability. An effective workforce housing action plan would require the City to provide an annual report, stating units lost, preserved and added to the housing stock that could serve constituents such as firefighters, police, teachers, senior citizens. Will you support this accountability? If not, do you have a better idea?
4. Opportunities. Housing experts, developers, financial specialists and others point out that Alexandria must offer higher densities in carefully designated areas to achieve significant amounts of workforce housing. Do you agree? Will you support density increases if properly planned and coordinated with open space, transportation mitigation and mixed use?
5. Funding. Will you commit to continued City funding to support workforce housing? What means of funding do you favor? How will you ensure that dedicated funds from the property tax are used to keep Alexandria diverse?
6. AHDC. After almost two years, the Alexandria Housing Development Corporation has not funded a single unit of housing. Should the City widen its options by working more closely with other nonprofit and for-profit housing developers?
7. Policy and Preservation. As a result of the rapid escalation of residential property values, property taxes on apartments, condos and single family homes have risen dramatically. Increases in property taxes are forcing increases in apartment rents and displacing households on fixed moderate- and low-incomes. Will you commit to a tax policy for workforce housing that uses an income-based valuation that would then moderate property tax burdens? Will you commit to further exploring ways that property tax relief or delayed payment of property taxes might allow homeowners (condos included) to remain residents of Alexandria? Finally, if Alexandria does not have the authority, will you support legislation that would allow the City to provide tax abatement for the rehabilitation and preservation of workforce housing?
|
|
|
|
