Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 24, 2016)
4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2016 Housing Crunch: ‘It’s not going to go away’ Continued from Page 1A In the improved economy, Asto- ria, Seaside and Cannon Beach aggressively marketed themselves as tourist destinations, inviting vis- itors to take another look at the North Coast. But the problem with more people visiting, and observing the quality of life, is that more people want to stay. “It’s a beautiful place to live — that’s the reason people want to live here,” said Scott Lee, chair- man of the Clatsop County Board of Commissioners, who also leads the board of the Northwest Oregon Housing Authority. Attractive locale Clatsop County, while expen- sive for many locals, can be a inan- cial safety valve for people priced out of urban areas, such as Portland and Seattle, where the cost of living has skyrocketed. With the region becoming known as an attractive locale to vacation or relocate, property val- ues have risen, along with rents and home prices. Even with historically low mort- gage rates and a revived labor mar- ket — two conditions that encour- age buyers — fewer sellers are entering the market. “So despite buyer enthusiasm, the number of properties for sale is dwindling,” Debbie Morrow, exec- utive oficer at the Clatsop Associ- ation of Realtors, said in an email. Homeowners looking to sell may not be able to do so because inding another home is dificult. This has given rise to “supply grid- lock,” Morrow said. In late September, Clatsop County had two months of inven- tory in the $150,000 to $200,000 range, two months of inventory in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, and four months of inventory in the $250,000 to $300,000 range, according to igures compiled by Pam Ackley, who serves on the Warrenton City Commission and is a real-estate broker with Winder- mere Stellar. “Most of the county is in a sell- er’s market now,” Ackley said. Above $300,000, the county’s housing market is more likely to be in a buyer’s market — that is, beyond that price point, the mar- ket often has more than six months’ worth of inventory (a igure cal- culated by dividing the number of houses sold in the last year by 12, then dividing the number of active listings by that quotient). For apartments, there are few listings below the $825- to $950-a-month range and an overall paucity of options that can compli- cate economic mobility. Subsidies not enough The housing crunch can be espe- cially frustrating for people who qualify for subsidized housing. Northwest Oregon Housing Authority — a nonproit agency that works with low-income fam- ilies and individuals in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook coun- ties — administers housing-choice vouchers that allow applicants to rent from private landlords. Last year, the agency paid rental assistance for 345 families in Clat- sop County through the voucher program — $1.6 million in rent payments directly to private land- lords, according to Todd Johnston, the housing authority’s executive director. However, many people with vouchers are having trouble locat- ing rental units. “They’re ending up returning those vouchers and not being able to use them,” Johnston said. The number of families return- ing housing vouchers because they were unable to ind a rental has increased from roughly 7 percent to 11 percent in each of the three counties in the past ive years, according to agency igures. The waitlist for a voucher has reached two years. Dificult to build The logical move, it would seem, is simply to build more hous- ing units in all categories, which could help drive down prices. But advocates for this strategy confront a host of dificulties. For one thing, local com- munities, in varying degrees, have a scarcity of land that is development-ready. In Astoria, for example, “you’ve got a city that’s pretty much already built out,” Community Develop- ment Director Kevin Cronin said. The city has few vacant parcels, most of which are tied up in owner- ship issues, or come with a check- list of formidable geotechnical challenges, like steep slopes or bar- riers to outside access. When costs Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian The city of Astoria as seen from the air in July. Clatsop County’s housing shortage has no easy solutions with a lack of buildable space and community opposition to changing the character of the towns and cities. The dearth of housing is also felt at every rung of the employment ladder. Clatsop County census and housing data 101 PACIFIC 103 Long Beach 4 401 Warrenton WAHKIAKUM Wash. Ore. Astoria 30 202 Seaside 26 Cannon Beach N CLATSOP TILLAMOOK 101 Source: U.S. Census Bureau are accounted for — from acquir- ing the land to hooking up utilities — developers often realize a proj- ect does not pencil out. And, though rents are ris- ing, they have not hit a level that is likely to incentivize much new construction, Cronin said. Vocal opposition Development projects that could help ease the housing crunch regu- larly encounter vocal opposition. In one recent example, neigh- bors opposed a 48-unit apartment complex in Miles Crossing west of Astoria because, among other objections, they were concerned with trafic impacts and whether the area had enough water and sewer capacity. Richard Krueger, the devel- oper behind the project, initially appealed a denial by the Clat- sop County Planning Commission before he decided to withdraw. Opponents of Miles Crossing encountered the pejorative label “NIMBY” (Not In My Backyard), but at least one of them, William Cook, called that characterization “totally baseless.” The opposition, he said, “had nothing to do with ‘Not In My Backyard.’ It had everything to do with the ability to support a devel- opment like this.” Cook, who lives less than a mile from the proposed development, said, “I think that any kind of com- plex like this should be sited in an area where foot trafic allows peo- ple to access their primary needs — groceries, health care, trans- portation, recreation — especially when you’re talking about a com- plex that’ll house children.” Many business and civic leaders supported the project because of the lack of affordable rentals. The apartments would have been built on 10.4 acres between Lewis and Clark Elementary School and the Lewis and Clark Golf & RV Resort. Krueger, who has also tried to get a housing project built at the old Central School property in Asto- ria, said a number of residents are “anti-growth” and present obsta- cles to housing development. Growth limits One possible solution in some Item Population, 2015 est. Population, 2010 est. Population per square mile (2010) Land area in square miles (2010) Under age 18, 2015 Under age 18, 2010 65 years and over, 2015 65 years and over, 2010 High school graduate or higher, age 25 or older* Bachelor’s degree or higher, age 25 or older* In civilian labor force, age 16 or older* Median household income (2014 dollars)* Housing units, 2015 Housing units, 2010 Owner-occupied housing units* Median value, owner-occupied housing units* Median selected monthly mortgage costs* Median gross rent* Building permits, 2015 *2010-14 cities is to expand the urban growth boundary, a land use planning line to restrict sprawl. Warrenton and Seaside have discussed expan- sions, though no oficial progress has been made. In Astoria, the urban growth boundary is one of the “third rails” of local politics, Cronin said. Because Astoria is surrounded by water on three sides, moving the boundary would mean encroach- ing on farmland and forest the city uses to help fund capital improve- ments. The town’s hinterlands also provide habitat for ish and other wildlife. Cronin said that expanding the urban growth boundary is “not something we’re prepared to do here in Astoria.” The trade-off is that the city will have to develop within exist- ing limits. “Astoria has to igure out how to encourage that without going through pitched battles each and every time that you want to do a project,” Cronin said. Unwilling to grow outward, Astoria may have to live with a compact urban core. And a tight urban growth boundary may force development on vacant parcels, and generate more interest in rehabili- tating vacant homes and underused property. “There needs to be some sort of consensus in the community about what is most important, and if housing truly is an important issue, and that we’re trying to solve it, we’re going to have to be accepting of seeing new development, or at least trying to ind ways to encour- age reuse of existing buildings,” Cronin said. A side effect of success In a certain light, the housing crunch might be viewed as a pos- itive sign — a side effect of eco- nomic growth. But the crunch also constrains that growth, several experts believe. The dearth of housing is felt at every rung of the employment ladder — from small retail opera- tions to midlevel breweries to large health care agencies — aggravat- ing, and limiting, the workforce. “Our staff is certainly affected by this,” Jennifer Cameron-Lattek Clatsop 37,831 37,037 44.7 829 19.6% 20.5% 20.0% 16.6% 90.9% 23.6% 60.3% $47,337 21,928 21,546 62.7% $248,300 $1,526 $825 208 Oregon 4.03 million 3.83 million 39.9 95,988 21.4% 22.6% 16.4% 13.9% 89.5% 30.1% 62.4% $50,521 1.72 million 1.68 million 61.5% $234,100 $1,591 $894 17,510 Alan Kenaga/EO Media Group of Street 14 Cafe said. “We often hear that they’re having problems inding housing they can afford.” Kevin Campbell, the CEO of Greater Oregon Behavioral Health Inc., told county commissioners over the summer that it has been dificult recruiting mental health professionals to help rebuild Clat- sop Behavioral Healthcare. “I can recruit people, but if they don’t have a place to live, they’re not going to stay,” he said. Jim Knight, the Port of Astoria’s executive director, said the insufi- cient housing opportunities have become a hindrance to recruiting talented employees at the Port. The situation has hit a point, he said, where, before a potential hire has gotten very far in an interview, the housing issue comes up. Speaking of the county at large, Knight said, “Housing, right now, is probably one of the most import- ant concerns that we’ve got to wrestle with.” Cronin said that, whether a busi- ness wants to attract millennials or experienced professionals, “if you have new employees that you’re trying to hire, and you are trying to provide a competitive advan- tage, and they have other offers out there, you want to be able to pro- vide them the housing options that they need.” Kevin Leahy, executive direc- tor of Clatsop Economic Develop- ment Resources, said, “If we can’t get more housing units and rental units online in the market here, it’s going to dramatically impact our economy.” Some improvement There are some indications the situation may be improving. Sean Fitzpatrick, who serves on the Astoria Planning Commission and owns the Illahee and Frank- lin apartment complexes with his wife, said rental prospects were bleak last year. “Starting in January of 2015, our phones rang constantly with people desperately looking for housing,” he wrote in an email. “We had waiting lists for every unit that became available.” That is not the case this year: “Every unit I turn over inds a tenant. Every tenant looking has Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian Kevin Leahy poses for a portrait in his Clatsop Economic Develop- ment Resources office in Seaside. ‘If we can’t get more housing units and rental units online in the market here, it’s going to dramatically impact our economy.’ Kevin Leahy executive director of Clatsop Economic Development Resources MORE ONLINE Watch a video talking about the Housing Crunch in Clatsop County at goo.gl/JaGB1x found a home. Tenants now appear to have options, able to choose between two or more units.” Though he is aware the evi- dence is anecdotal, Fitzpatrick said “there seems to be a balance between people moving to the area and people moving out of the area.” Clatsop Economic Develop- ment Resources recently held a meeting devoted to housing scar- city and compiled a list of develop- ment projects in review and under construction. Some homebuilding, to be sure, is taking place. But most experts do not believe market forces alone will solve the problem. Rather, it will require a combination of market activity, development code changes and community consensus to make the creation of new housing a priority. “You cannot sit there and say, ‘Well, we’re just not going to deal with it. It’ll go away,’” Leahy said. “It’s not going to go away.” Derrick DePledge contributed to this report.
