Affordable Housing Meeting scheduled Tuesday at The Vogue

Information Supplied by Chelan Planning Commissioner, Rachael Goldie

The public is invited to participate in a meeting Tuesday, May 29th, starting at 6 pm at The Vogue, to discuss affordable housing strategies and solutions. The Affordable Housing Initiative hand-out is posted below for your review.

Click on these links to access recent LakeChelanNow Related Stories and Interviews:

Making Waves: Episode 7 – Includes in-depth interview with Affordable Housing Consultant, Julie Brunner, hired by the City of Chelan

Report on the April 25th Affordable Housing Meeting – Brief interview with Julie Brunner, Affordable Housing Consultant

Affordable Housing Meeting notice for April 25th meeting

AHI: Developing strategies to remove barriers to housing for our neighbors, friends, and workforce that support the Chelan Valley

The Problem
Chelan Valley’s unique small town character and agricultural heritage are being diminished due to barriers of entry to the housing market for our long term residents and workforce.
● ¼ of Chelan city residents are cost burdened according to HUD, which reflects a much higher AMI than we actually have.
● An estimated 800 employees travel 25-50 miles to work in our ag and hospitality industries every day. Small business owners are in a constant struggle to not work 7 days a week to keep the doors open. Most businesses/agencies struggle finding invested and qualified staff to fill skilled positions.
● Manson and Chelan school districts are losing families and teachers by the dozens
every year. Service agencies claim that student health and safety has dramatically
increased as a result.
● 38% of hospital employees commute from outside areas every day
● And the list goes on…

Why We Care
We can live in a community where everyone has access to opportunity and a decent, stable, affordable place to call home. By investing in housing opportunities, we can create a Chelan Valley with a better future for all of us.
● If we want to grow and diversify our economy, businesses must be able to attract and maintain a stable, rooted workforce. Many people who contribute to the economy and overall fabric of our community cannot afford housing in the Chelan Valley. They are our teachers, public servants, servers, nurses, grocers and small business owners, to name a few.
● Ask yourself: What would Chelan and Manson be like if we lost the people who fill these positions?
● We need to bring these thresholds down to what our population can afford. Hard working people should be able to afford housing and still have enough money for groceries and other basic needs.
● 10. 15, 25 or 50 years ago a young ambitious person or family starting out could work hard and have some expectation of making the investment in a permanent home in the Chelan Valley. The threshold to make that kind of investment in our valley is simply beyond the reach of all but a handful of those that may inherit land or have generated wealth elsewhere and may not share the values many of us embrace.
● Ask yourself: “When I came here 10, 15, 25 years ago, facing the economic conditions that currently prevail, would I or could I have stayed and become a contributing member of this community?”

Children deserve an opportunity to succeed in school and life, which is tied to having a stable home.
● Ask yourself: “Will my kids have the same opportunity I had to return here and build a family? Would my parents have been able to get established here, facing these conditions? How are our families deciding between food and rent able to provide a stable home for their children?” It’s only fair that everyone has a safe, decent place to live.
● This is not about charity or handouts, this is about providing a vehicle for hard working people to become contributing members of society. It’s about helping those who have grown old here maintain their place in our community and grace us with the perspective only acquired with age. It’s about holding a spot in this beautiful valley for our children and our grandchildren.

The Solution: Community Land Trust Method. It works!
● Community Land Trusts have been used since the civil rights movement to provide land and resources for those who have been pushed out of the traditional markets.
● HUD/federal programs, major lenders, and municipal authorities are all in support of this model because it puts resources to the best use possible and serves the community over the long term.
● See additional handout for more information.

The Community Land Trust (CLT) Model is an organization that will:
● Allow for broad community involvement that includes residents of the housing, large public and private institutions and general members of the community.
● Provide for the permanent protection and stewardship of the subsidy that we, as a community will need to provide.
● Draw on the shared expertise of hundreds of organizations and thousands of individuals accumulated over 50 years of working in the housing industry to develop and maintain quality affordable housing.
● Employ an organizational structure that is recognized as a responsible and effective partner by financial institutions nationally, including HUD, USDA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; by the Washington State Housing Finance Commission and by banks, locally including Washington Federal, Umpqua Bank, Banner Bank, Peoples Bank, Guild Mortgage….
● Allow for partnership and resource sharing with similar ongoing efforts by our neighbors in Wenatchee, Leavenworth and the Methow Valley.

Long term resale and homeownership is the most sustainable, affordable, and preferred
option over time.
● Rentals and seasonal housing are certainly part of the solution. That being said, evidence shows that those living seasonally or in rentals would prefer long term homeownership when given the opportunity and education. Rental models are also more expensive and energy intensive over time and produce less economic and community investment. We will need to make sure that we find a rental and seasonal solution that will last over the long term.

Next Step
1. Creating a business plan and capitalizing on the energy at hand.​We need to combine the resources of the City, the County, local business and the general public to effectively address this mission. After months of discussion and research it is time to begin working toward concrete solutions that address the need for housing options in our valley. We need move quickly and deliberately to capitalize on the broad goodwill and generosity that has been expressed over the past few weeks. While the City has provided leadership, it is not the role of a small, rural city to develop and manage housing on its own.

Needed to complete this step: Skilled individuals to research, collaborate and set goals for:
● Building: ​Building Proforma, research and development of strategies. Need members with a strong background in the Chelan area as well as folks wanting to donate time/energy to building and design.
● Project Research:​ Vetting potential projects and partnerships. Real estate, building/development, and finance backgrounds preferred.
● Organization:​ 501c3 incorporation, bylaws, board recruitment, and operations/admin. Organized, task oriented, and good communicators preferred.
● Fundraising and Marketing (Tim intro on CLT gathering ideas):​ We need operations $ right now and to start securing funds and land from offers made. Anyone with fundraising experience,
networking skills, facebook/website/social media preferred.
● Homeowner Financing:​ Need a realtor qualified for DPA course and research/development of
homeowner financing options. There are many!
● Social Services, Outreach, and Education:​ Biggest hurdle is the understanding of the CLT
method, how successful it is, and what it can do for our community. Also benefits of
homeownership. Need a few strong people here and at least 1 (preferably more) to lead Latino
outreach and spanish communications. These members will ideally have SS background in our
community and be willing to spend time connecting with potential tenants.
● Stewardship and Ops Planning:​ Researching ways in which CLT will continue stewardship of land and how the CLT will manage housing/rental agreements. CLT, HOA, or property management experience preferred or any type of sustainability, maintenance or building experience.

At the May 29th Meeting we will be discussing these and making goals in each area. Please contact Rachael Goldie – rgoldie@cityofchelan.us or call 425-275-2002 for additional information and to sign up for next steps.