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By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff writer
October 7, 2006
Single-family homes in Hood River are now
selling for an average of $385,000 — placing the American Dream of
ownership beyond the reach of even middle-income professionals.
“It’s obvious that the workforce of Hood River can’t afford to live here
if they are just buying a house now,” said Cindy Walbridge, city planning
director.
Last year, when local governments began researching the issue, the average
selling price in Hood River was $229,921. A multi-agency task force headed
by Walbridge was then put together to compile data and scout out
solutions.
She recently delivered the findings of the Affordable Housing Committee to
the Hood River City Council. And she will carry the same report to the
Hood River County Commission at 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 20. A meeting with
the Port of Hood River is also being scheduled for the near future.
Walbridge said it has become clear that, without some type of government
intervention, more and more workers in Hood River will have to become
commuters to buy a home. She said that trend deprives the community of
nurses, firefighters, teachers and others in careers that provide valuable
services.
According to Walbridge, an individual earning a $60,000 annual salary can
only afford a $245,000 house to avoid becoming “mortgage poor.” And the
price in Hood River makes it difficult for most homeowners to meet the
financial recommendation that 30-35 percent of an income be spent on house
payments.
“The number one outcry that we heard in our recent visioning process was,
‘Where are our children going to live and where are we going to live when
we get older?’” said Walbridge.
She said the high cost of land, at $90,000-$100,000 on a 7,500 square foot
lot, is contributing to the problem. In addition, development fees run
about $10,000 per house. Walbridge said many builders find it difficult to
make a profit without setting a high price on new homes.
The grim scenario in Hood River is being played out to a lesser degree in
outlying areas of the county. According to recent stats compiled by local
realtors, a buyer can pick up a home in Cascade Locks for about $164,875;
in Odell for $198,083 and in Parkdale for $316,606.
Walbridge said, while home values may have spiked, the median household
income in Hood River County is $38,531 — not enough to cover the necessary
payment.
HOPE (Housing for People) Director Richard Sassara recently calculated
that 85 percent of the county’s population can no longer afford to buy a
dwelling in today’s market.
“We have reached the point where we need to make affordable housing an
objective or accept workers living elsewhere,” said Walbridge.
Her committee is recommending that local officials take the following
actions:
* Seek out state and federal grants to offset infrastructure costs
for new middle-income subdivisions.
* Adopt a second tier of fees to lower the construction costs for
affordable housing plans.
* Set up a community land bank from surplused public parcels or
those donated by private parties.
* Levy some type of additional fee on second homes that are used
only part of the year to raise money for full-time needs.
In addition, the committee wants local governments to ask for the
following legislative changes at the state level:
* Have Oregon follow Washington state’s example and adopt a real
estate excise tax that would open up a revenue source for more housing.
* Legalize inclusionary zoning, which would require developers to
dedicate a certain number of lots in a subdivision for lower-income
dwellings. These models would appear the same architecturally as the more
expensive residences nearby but would sell for less money.
Both the city council and county commission have taken the first step
toward overcoming the housing challenge.
The council recently granted property owners the right to build a small
accessory dwelling on their lots. The unit cannot be larger than 800
square feet and must be used as a long-term rental or inhabited by an
elderly or needy family member.
In order to streamline the building process for accessory dwellings, the
elected body refrained from setting design standards that would require a
lengthy review process.
Meanwhile, the county is moving ahead on plans to turn its State Street
parking lot into a residential center.
Officials believe there is room for eight to 10 condominiums in the lot
across from the county administration building. The 16,000-square-foot
space can either be leased or sold, a decision that will be made once all
of the development options are thoroughly investigated.
“We can control the prices on this piece of property because the land is
already owned,” said David Meriwether, county administrator.
One challenge that officials expect to encounter in the development of
more affordable housing is “NIMBY-ism,” which means Not In My Back Yard.
Walbridge is hopeful that, through an educational outreach, the Hood River
community can come to a better understanding of the situation.
“It’s important to have a town comprised of many mixed incomes to avoid
the ‘gated-community syndrome’ where everybody is the same. And people
lose perspective over what our world is about,” she said. |
