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The
Martha's Vineyard Times is a weekly publication.
January
13 - January 19, 2005 Edition
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EDITORIAL Links January 15, 2005 The broad support of Islanders for a variety of subsidized, affordable housing initiatives is commendable. It is an overdue commitment, and it promises to be expensive. But whether, despite our wholehearted support, the effort will succeed in expanding housing opportunities for the good neighbors of varying economic classes that we know must be part of our community in the future, may depend as much or more on coordinated policies for growth management than on the amount of public money devoted to the problem. Abbe Burt, a hard working supporter of the affordable housing effort here, expresses dismay that BonGo on Main Street in Vineyard Haven will close. “The closure seems symptomatic of the malaise overtaking our Island,” she writes, “a malaise that is eroding our precious sense of community. High real estate prices, leading to inflated rents, are forcing out the small businesses that are so necessary to our life here. What will replace BonGo? Another seasonal gift shop or seasonal souvenir store? Small year-round businesses of all types have long been the root of Vineyard life, and their continued viability is now directly tied in to our housing problems …” Ms. Burt is precisely correct about the threat that high priced real estate presents to small business owners and consequently to their employees and patrons. And she might have added to teachers, tradesmen, nurses, and others whose talents and viewpoints are important to the Vineyard community’s general health and well-being. But there are many influences on price inflation of land and housing. Demand is great, especially from well-financed off-Islanders. The on-Island market for any business is small, seasonal, wealthier than it ever has been, but still only moderately financed. The challenge to owners and employees in small businesses is immense. And growth controls contribute significantly to the scarcity of moderately priced land and housing, to own or rent, for residential or business purposes. According to a study paper produced for the Brookings Institution Center for Urban and Metropolitan Policy, entitled The Link Between Growth Management and Housing Affordability: The Academic Evidence: “By assuring that land is available explicitly for the construction of higher-density housing, and by removing barriers to the construction of that housing, growth management can help overcome exclusionary zoning. One of the most important policy implications to be gleaned from this review is that the work of local planners plays a significant role in determining the severity of housing price inflation attributable to growth management policies … [S]temming housing price inflation requires planners to enact proactive measures to guarantee affordability as well as to ensure an adequate supply of land and housing … [I]ncentives and mandates together — along with supportive land use policies — are likely to make the most positive contribution to housing opportunity. If left to their own devices, however, local governments will often avoid affirmative measures … Traditional land use practices tend be ‘laissez-faire’ in their approach to affordable housing, or they deliberately zone for low density, expensive homes to exclude low-income households or communities of color. Properly designed growth management programs, on the other hand, aim to overcome these exclusionary effects.” The powerful concept here is that the affordable housing problem we face is linked to the economic development issues we face is linked to the growth management decisions me make. And only an affirmative, coordinated effort is likely to be successful, an effort that braids the need to conserve important natural and cultural resources — on which we have focused sharply to the neglect of other issues — with the need to encourage economic development and the growth of necessary, affordable housing opportunities. |
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©The
Martha's Vineyard Times 2004 - www.mvtimes.com
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