You may have seen signs around town that say: “healthcare workers need affordable places to live,” or “farmworkers need affordable places to live” or “my granddaughters need affordable places to live.” We can all agree on the basic premise that everyone, no matter their income, should have a home that meets their needs.
But for nearly two decades, we simply haven’t built enough homes for the people in Sonoma County, making housing scarce and unaffordable for many. This is not news to most of us. After the 2017 wildfires that destroyed over 5,000 homes, there was a collective urgency to rebuild AND address our existing housing shortage. Now, as we emerge from the pandemic, it’s time to put housing back on top of our collective priority list.
A recent Generation Housing report concluded that we are 38,000 housing units behind and that we’ll need 20,000 more by 2030. That’s a total of 58,000 homes. This must include housing that serves people at all income levels, with a mix of housing types. We need to increase our housing production rate to a little over 6,000 homes per year to achieve that. We should not be daunted by this number. They’re building at this rate or greater, per capita, in lots of places, including Greeley, Colorado; St. George, Utah; Austin, Texas; Boise, Idaho; and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In Sonoma County we built at this rate in the 1980s. We can do this.
We must build the housing we need for the people who love it here and want to stay. Generation Housing’s call for 58,000 new homes is not sounding the doom and gloom alarm, it is a rallying cry, a call to action. We can do this.
Why is this so important?
More than half of Sonoma County’s residents, the highest in the entire Bay Area, pay more than 30 percent of their income on housing. Paying this much for housing is, by federal standards, considered “housing cost burdened,” and does not support a healthy way of living.
If you’re paying too much to keep a roof over your head, then you’re not paying for something else. Maybe you forgo healthy food or medicine you need. Parents may not be able to afford licensed child care or educational support for kids. Barely making the rent leaves little room for emergencies or retirement, leaving folks just one or two unexpected expenses — a car breakdown or trip to the ER — from financial ruin or homelessness.
Some are forced to resort to overcrowded living spaces. A staggering 25 percent of our county’s kids live in overcrowded homes. Many local youth fear they might have to leave the area to find affordable housing and express little hope for ever owning a home. This does not bode well for our future.
Finally, while the drivers of homelessness are many and complicated, lack of affordable housing is the most common cause of homelessness. In a recent survey of people experiencing homelessness in Sonoma County, 70 percent said “can’t afford rent” was a top obstacle in moving to permanent housing.
Can we do this without sacrificing our local environment and unique culture? Yes!
The combined general plans for the County and its nine independent jurisdictions conclude that our current infrastructure and urban growth boundaries can accommodate 51,980 homes. Most plans were last updated several years ago, are currently or soon undergoing revisions, and will likely show an expanded infrastructure.
We’ve got plenty of infill space to develop — ground floor and above! So we can build all the housing we need without infringing on our open space, parks, or agricultural land. Multi-family housing communities use comparably less water, reduce commute times, and have smaller carbon footprints than single family homes.
More, more kinds of, and more affordable housing means more people who have the discretionary income to participate as active consumers in our local economy. More housing at all income levels means our employers can find the workforce they need. More housing means more people that work here can give up their commute and live here too. More housing protects and grows our diverse, engaging, and vibrant culture.
Homebuilding Can Fuel Our Local Economy.
Housing development is a powerful economic engine and job creator. Research shows that for every dollar invested in homebuilding, $2.15 is injected into the local economy. Studies show that just one 100-unit affordable housing project produces nearly eight million dollars in local income, almost one million dollars in local tax revenue, and 122 jobs in its first year. Committing to building 6,000 homes a year can be a driver of our economic recovery and sustainable prosperity.
How do WE do this?
Together we must flex our collective First Amendment muscles in support of housing solutions for OUR community. The more people who speak up in support of housing, the greater our ability to transform talk into action. We need to show up to say YES to new housing communities, even some in our backyards
Sign up for Generation Housing updates and action alerts to join us in advocating for:
- Changing state and local policy in a way that makes homebuilding easier for developers — faster, cheaper, and less risky
- Eliminating local zoning policies that exclude access to some neighborhoods and allow property owners the right to build more types of housing on their parcels
- Incentivizing building — and building up — in our local jurisdictions’ city centers, which will bring more families, young professionals, local business, and arts into our downtowns
Generation Housing will provide simple, quick ways for you to let the decisionmakers know that we need action on housing.
One direct way in which way YOU can make a difference is through the Housing Element, which guides your local jurisdictions’ housing plans.
A Housing Element functions as a housing development roadmap. Cities and counties are required by state law to create a new Housing Element every eight years. Community input is an essential (and state mandated) part of that process.
Right now, the County of Sonoma and all its cities are in the process of updating their Housing Elements. We urge you to get involved to help shape our housing development roadmaps. You can participate in one of your local Housing Element workshops, where you can advocate for policy solutions to the housing shortage. You can help build a prosperous community where all of our friends and family have the housing they need. See our website for more information and ways to get involved. We can do this.
We Are Gen H
Generation Housing is the advocacy organization dedicated to leading the charge for more, more diverse, and more affordable housing. All of us who live or work in Sonoma County and are determined to get the housing we need built, We are Gen H. Join us.