I get the concern about growing up privileged and isolated. However, I am not sure the HCA gets at the root cause. 40% of Lincoln’s housing units are multifamily. It would seem that the issue is not the amount of multifamily housing, but apparently a lack of intermingling, which would suggest a different policy response.
[image: image.png] I wanted to add my voice to the housing discussion that has been going on > here over the past few weeks. > Affordable housing is a priority that's been close to my heart since > moving to Lincoln, and especially as I raise my kids here. I want my kids > to grow up in a place where they have access to many different points of > view, backgrounds, life experiences, and identities. I want them to live in > spaces where they practice empathy and understanding across different > perspectives daily, and work to deconstruct their privilege and build a > more just community. > Unfortunately housing policy in our country and in our town has > historically been a barrier to this – it’s worked to enshrine privilege and > exacerbate inequality. We’ve chosen to maintain the segregation by race and > wealth created by redlining and other explicitly racist policies through > exclusionary zoning. I believe that creating denser and more affordable > housing in Lincoln is our most critical tool to begin to right these > historical wrongs, and create the kind of town that I want my children to > grow up in. > Committing to the rezoning that the HCA requires is an important start. > But, zoning does not equal housing. As I review the proposals on the table > at town meeting in a few weeks to create more housing density in areas of > Lincoln, my most critical criteria will be this: will developers come and > actually build the housing that each proposal allows? The HCAWG has worked > hard to develop proposals in the spirit of a yes to this question -- and I > believe the only clear "yes" is Lincoln Station. Rezoning proposals that do > not include Lincoln Station are far less likely to actually result in more > housing. As such, in my view, these options don't align with a vote in > favor of affordable housing. And as has been noted in previous discussions, > although only 10% of new development is required to be affordable, as a > town with so many voices in favor of affordable housing, we can choose to > subsidize a higher percentage as we've done with Oriole Landing. But first > the additional housing needs to be built -- and it likely won't be outside > of Lincoln Station. > I ask too that you consider this criteria as you weigh the options on the > table. Many towns will try to do as little as possible as they comply with > the HCA. They will define minimum viable units, they will tuck housing into > areas that they know will never be developed. I don't think this is who we > are as a town. I hope that we choose instead to use the opportunity the HCA > gives us to not just comply with zoning but to create housing and moreover > to create affordable housing, and in doing so, continue to share and build > our town with an even broader and more diverse community. > Kristen Ferris Ben
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