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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 2000)
ïhv t Ut nò G^bemwr --------------------- < Focus Fair Housing COUTKIBCTEP STORY for T he P ortland O bserver Displacement is a social tragedy that doesn’t have to happen. There are a num berof tools, used here and in o th e r c o m m u n itie s, w hich successfully prevent or counteract displacement. I t ’s tim e to tak e a lo o k at implementing some o f these proven programs while we still have viable communities left: H o u sin g U n it R e p la c e m e n t Program s require that housing units which are demolished or converted to other units be replaced on a unit- for-unit basis. The City o f Portland 4 passed a lim ite d h o u sin g preservation ordinance in 1998. C o m m u n ity L a n d T ru s ts are p ro g ram s w hich se p a ra te the ownership o f the land from the ownership o f the housing, thus m aking the housing unit more affordable. In Portland, the Sabin Community D e v e lo p m e n t C o rp o ra tio n is piloting such a program. E m ployer A ssisted H ousing is identified broadly as any type o f activity whereby an employer assists its employees in buying homes. Emanuel Hospital does this through th e ir N e ig h b o rh o o d H om e O w n e rsh ip P rogram ; W acker Siltronics and Rejuvenation, Inc., have similar programs. H ousing T r u s t F u n d s provide flexible funding resources to help in m eeting low and moderate- income housing needs. The Sante Fe C o u n ty , N ew M exico, investment and involvement the effects o f residential stability on school performance accumulation o f some equity that would be unavai lable through rental housing Mandatory Goals/Requirements M andatory requirem ents are necessary to ensure that affordable housing will be developed and preserved, particularly in a hot housing market where there is little financial incentive to provide affordable housing. Implementation is important too, without enforcement mechanisms to ensure that affordable housing is preserved and built, a mandatory p lan is not lik e ly to be Property from page 2 acquire many properties since then. They began by simply buying a home and leveraging it to get the next and the next. By doing this, they are accomplishing two things, im proving the com m unity and creating additional incom e for themselves. Ben and Lisa are just a small part o f a larger picture that could include you - the homeowner thinking about investing in real estate. Stocks, bonds and mutual Page 5 We can fight displacement Affordable Housing Trust Fund, and the V erm o n t H o u sin g and Conservation Trust Fund are two successful examples. J o b s /H o u s in g L in k a g e p ro g ra m s re q u ire th at developers o f com m ercial properties construct or provide financial assistance for the production o f affo rd aab le housing as a condition o f building permit approval. Two California programs, one in Sacramento and one in San Francisco, are up and running. Inclusionary Zoning requires that developers provide a p e rc e n ta g e o f a ffo rd a b le housing units as part o f a p ro p o sed re sid e n tia l d e v e lo p m e n t p ro je c t. Successful inclusionary zoning funds are all good ways to invest, but real estate can offer a quicker and larger return and should not be ignored by the serious investor. S o , when you ’re ready to invest in property, give me a cal 1 so we can help improve the community and make some money in the process. Chris Guinn III is a Real Estate agent with Millennium Properties. He can he reached by phone at 503/282-2551. Advertise in The Focus, 1 Call 288-0033 J programs have been in effect since the late seventies and early eighties in Irvine, California; Montgomery County, Maryland; and Burlington, Vermont. For more on Displacement and the 1999 study o f it, call 503/294-2889 or email them at clf@friends.org. Affordable Quality Retirement Living for Seniors 62 years and older Alberta Simmons Plaza 6611 NE Martin Luther King Blvd Portland, Oregon 97211 240-4198 • O ne-Bedroom Apartm ents with Full Sized K itchens and Living Areas • Planned A ctivities, Laundry Facility, C onference & M eeting Room, Elevator and Library, and Off Street Parking • C onveniently Located to Shopping, Restaurants, Pharm acy, and M edical O ffices Subsidizing from page 3 o u t all o p p o rtu n itie s for accumulating wealth through the equity gained in home ownership. Community land trusts have been proposed as part o f P ortland’s A ffo rd a b le h o u sin g stra te g y . Community land trusts are a good strategy for providing some the benefits o f home ow nership to people who would otherwise be unable to experience these benefits. The benefits to the individual and the community ofthis form o f partial ownership or what some have called “shared equity,” include: residential stability (respite from the unpredictability o f rental housing) c o m m u n ity /n e ig h b o rh o o d iMarch 29, 2000 implemented. t=I
