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School districts consider housing assistance |
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By Nancy
Isles Nation As the high cost
of living makes recruiting and retaining good teachers more difficult for
schools in Marin, some districts are exploring housing assistance as a way to
make it possible for faculty to be able to afford to live in the community in
which they work. Mill Valley and
Kentfield school districts have established committees to look into a variety
of options they say are designed to show teachers they are valued and wanted
in their community. Mill Valley's
committee, the Partnership Project, was formed during salary negotiations
last fall, when it became clear that teachers wanted support beyond their
paychecks. District
officials are analyzing questionnaires completed by teachers to assess the
top issues of need and concern. One that seems to
come up frequently is that teachers cannot afford to live in the community in
which they work, or even nearby. The annual average salary for a teacher in
Marin is $47,766, and the median home price is more than $600,000. That
doesn't leave teachers with enough money to save for a down payment, and
won't cover the payments for a home they might desire near their jobs. "There is
certainly an indication from staff, and the city has an interest for police
and fire fighters," said Barbara Young, superintendent of the Mill
Valley district. "We are looking at possible sites, should we pursue
that," The Partnership
Project, comprised of teachers, administrators, city council members and
school trustees, is considering some kind of housing project along with a
number of other options, including home loan programs and other support
structures. The committee is
expected to make a recommendation to the school board in the fall. One model Mill
Valley and other school districts throughout the state are looking at closely
is a Santa Clara Unified School District project. The district contracted
with a Sausalito developer to build a 40-unit apartment building to rent to
new teachers at below- market rents. The project is
designed to be a recruitment tool, available only to teachers who have been
with the district for fewer than three years. The units will be offered to
teachers for as many as five years, according to Superintendent Paul Perotti.
Santa Clara also
has worked with large local employers to make mortgage assistance programs
available to their staff, Perotti said. He is hoping the
incentives will slow down the rate of attrition in the 900-teacher district,
which, he said, lost 40 teachers at the end of the school year. "In areas
like Silicon Valley, and probably Marin, teachers are living like college
students for a while, with roommates and so forth, but it wears thin after
about three years," Perotti said. Typically, they
leave to take a job in a community where they can afford better
accommodations. Santa Clara's
one- and two-bedroom teacher housing project is expected to be completed by
March 2002. The developer,
Thompson Residential Partners, more typically builds luxury homes in the Bay
Area and throughout the state but took an interest in the project because it
is something that has not been done before. "It's great
to work on something that is a prototype," said Bruce Dorfman, a
principal in the firm. "I think this will take hold when the template is
out there and they see how it works in Silicon Valley." A variety of
financing options are available to school districts for such projects. Santa
Clara had the money to build the $6 million facility because the district had
sold surplus properties, but opted for a loan because interest rates were so
low. "All of the
districts have the ability to finance these in different ways," Dorfman
said, noting that many districts already have surplus property to build on. Dorfman, also a
Mill Valley parent, has met with the district's committee to show members the
Santa Clara example. "We're just
hoping it gets done in other places because it's a good idea," Dorfman
said. "There are opportunities out there and would certainly like to see
it implemented in Marin." The district has
worked with representatives from the city of Mill Valley, who are also
interested in seeing more affordable housing being built for essential
workers such as police and fire fighters. "The school
district and the city have parallel challenges," said Mayor Clifford
Waldeck. "That's why we're working together to create and seize
opportunities in terms of housing for our employees." While Mill Valley
officials have sites they could consider, other Marin districts are looking
at other options because they don't have surplus land or the surroundings in
which to build. Anna Pilloton, a
Kentfield schools trustee, said the district does not have easily developable
land. Pilloton is a member
of Kentfield's 21st Century Committee, a group much like to Mill Valley's
Partnership Project. "Our
suspicion is with the building environment around here, and particularly
considering multi-family, it is environmentally sensitive," Pilloton
said. "It's unusual in Kentfield to have any kind of development." The 21st Century
Committee is looking into financial assistance, perhaps through arrangements
with local banks. "Some of it
is recruitment but a lot of it is retaining the kinds of teachers we have
now," Pilloton said. "We view it as a real priority." |