Novato Advance Wednesday, July 26, 1989

Viewpoint

Novato Ecumenical Housing’s role explained

By Dwayne Hunn

 

Recently an opponent of the Berg Revoir Hamilton project called for the shakedown of four Novato agencies because, in her mind, they supported the Hamilton project

     One of those agencies Jo Behm wants closed is Novato Ecumenical Housing. Perhaps she waits to use the Hamilton vote to emasculate any organization that doesn’t fit her definition of community good. Perhaps it is because she doesn’t  understand what NEH does.

     NEH does not function just “to maximize density for developers,” as Ms. Behm claims. Sometimes NEH negotiates to have the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund receive fees instead of units. These fees can then be used to purchase existing units in Novato for low and moderate income families who cannot afford the average Novato home price of $290,000.

     NEH is not seeking “maximum growth and density” for its own sake. On its state record-setting Skylark Meadows ownership project, NEH reduced the allowable density from 40 to 37.

     NEH does not “lobby” at public hearings for “maximum densities” because we have a sweetheart arrangement” with developers. NEH tries to educate those who listen at public hearings to the benefits that can result from providing affor­dable housing near local jobs, such reducing traffic and generating tax revenues to the city.

     Sometimes NEH explains what larger bodies of government are doing to increase affordable housing opportunities.  For example, the state has enacted legislation requiring local government to allow density bonuses (within local General Plan limits) to those who make 25 percent of their new project’s rental units affordable to low and moderate income households.

   On a recent project NEH helped make the Novato City Council aware of this legislation. Had the city not agreed to approve this project, which was making 25 per­cent of its units affordable, an ex­pensive law suit could have ensued.

Pending state legislation could soon deny certain state funds to cities who fail to provide their fair share of affordable housing. Because Novato is not currently providing its fair share of affor­dable housing, the city could soon be deprived of critical revenues. As due lowest tax revenue generator in the nine Bay Area counties, Novato cannot afford to lose such critical revenues.

     Ms. Behm says the city should not be “financially supporting” NEH because NEH’s support of the Hamilton project showed it was not aligned with the consensus of the community.” NEH supported Hamilton because it would have provided:

·       1,600to 1,800 units of housing affordable to low and moderate in­come households;

·       an opportunity to balance jobs/affordable housing in a community where 77 percent of its employed residents

    commute out of town to work;

·       a myriad of innovative traffic mitigations programs that several smaller projects cannot match;

·       a ridership and consequent economic base that would help make the train economically viable.

    NEH hopes that the Novato com­munity will support us as we  work to fulfill our mission of helping those of modest means obtain hous­ing. Since the defeat of the Hamil­ton project deprived the city of $105 million of redevelopment agency affordable housing set-aside money, we hope the community will rally to find other means to help us replace those lost affordable housing funds.

    In the last three weeks alone, 127 Novato residents have returned completed applications to NEH as they compete to purchase 31 assisted units at Partridge Knolls. To most, this should indicate the over­whelming need for strong community support for an organization that works diligently to provide more affordable housing.

    Verbal proponents of affordable housing often are the same in­dividuals who in real actions drastically down zone  every project by playing on the fear that Novato will become another San Jose. Such fear-driven down zoning usually destroys developers’ attempts to provide affordable housing. There is no mason to believe that Novato will become a dense ghetto of poor people.

    Look at the housing prices. Look at the city’s density. According to Novato’s 1981 General Plan, gross residential density was about four units per developed acre. Today it is about two units per developed acre.

    Most of Novato’s teachers must commute from Sonoma to their jobs. Doesn’t this suggest why we have traffic problem? Only one out of 52 Novato police officers can af­ford to own in Novato. Aren’t we likely to some day regret this programmed exclusivity? Incidentally, the one police officer who resides in Novato with his family of five owns thanks to NEH assis­tance. Ms. Behm closes by pointing out that Marin has five affordable housing organizations and Novato’s affordable housing “funds should be used exclusively to repair or restore affordable housing.” NEH hopes the community will generate the funds to do that. Pur­chasing a small condo or an apart­ment building to restore takes sub­stantial capital. It is now difficult to purchase a fixer-upper single family detached house for less than $200,000 or find a Spartan condo for under $100,000.

    What NEH does is difficult and complicated. NEH has been es­tablishing a model affordable home ownership program, while simul­taneously developing important auxiliary programs that deal with child care, traffic mitigation, families in transition, rental referral, joint venture rental projects, land banking, etc. NEH has developed a variety of approaches because in providing affordable housing NEH must aims a myriad of emotional, financial and political hurdles.

    Nonetheless, in the last three years, NEH has provided purchase assistance to almost 30 families whose income  averaged $20,000 and whose family size averaged almost three. Many of those families purchased existing homes, so no new homes were aided to Novato’s existing two units per acre density. Assisting 30 low income families was accomplished with few capital resources, modest administrative grant assistance and plenty of political resistance.

    It is easy to forget the plight of a single mother if one is fortunate enough to have a secure two-in­come family to make the mortgage payment on a nice home obtained years ago. At NEH, we talk every day with desperate single parents in whose shoes most of NEHs opponents have never had to walk. Your support of NEH can make the path those shoes trod just a little mare gentle.