Thursday with the League   November 5, 2020

Understanding the Housing Crisis

In May 2019 the Housing Subcommittee gave a presentation about the problems faced by renters and landlords. At the November 2020 Thursday with the League, we will look at why it is taking so long to expand the stock of affordable housing. The long and the short of it lies in the cost of building. It costs almost as much to build an affordable unit as it does to build a luxury unit because most of the expenditures are in basic materials and labor—the basic structure, the heating and cooling systems, plumbing, electrical, etc. The finishes that make one luxury and another affordable account for a very small part of the price.

When you construct any building, you also have to budget for the multitude of fees and scheduling considerations involved with submitting plans for approval, impact studies in some areas, and unforeseen delays in permits and inspections. On top of that, there can be a shortage of construction workers for any project.

To help our members and the community understand this complex issue, one of our local League members will briefly introduce the problem, as researched by the Social Justice Housing Subcommittee, followed by three speakers: one from local government, an affordable housing builder, and a service provider who partners with various entities to support the recently homeless and those in danger of homelessness as they struggle to have affordable housing:

• William Huang, Housing Director for the City of Pasadena, will discuss how Pasadena facilitates the development of affordable housing, including identification of suitable sites and inclusionary zoning regulations.
• Cynthia Kurtz of National CORE will define the challenges faced by both nonprofit and for-profit affordable housing builders/developers, including barriers to getting new affordable housing built.
• Anne Miskey, CEO of Union Station Homeless Services, which supports the recently homeless and those in danger of homelessness, will outline the struggles they face as they try to provide affordable housing.

You will have the opportunity to ask questions and then discuss some of the solutions that are having an impact in communities, as well as what needs to be done to implement them in other localities.

—Anita Mackey, Housing Subcommittee Coordinator