Columbus can fight affordable housing crisis at ballot box |Opinion
Lark T. Mallory is the president and CEO of the Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus and Franklin County.
Affordable housing isn’t just about addressing homelessness, it’s also about teachers, firefighters, and working people of all stripes being able to live in the communities where they work. All too often in Columbus that isn’t a reality.
Columbus is a wonderful, diverse, world-class city – and it is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, and the fastest in Ohio and the Midwest. We live in a place that is changing and progressing before our eyes.
However, for all the benefits that come with population growth, it is also contributing to a perfect storm of increasing home values and rising rents that is worsening our affordable housing crisis.
Fortunately, Columbus voters on Nov. 8 will have the opportunity to help our city take a significant step toward increasing affordable housing options. The bond package on the ballot will invest $200 million in affordable housing – the single most tangible and impactful action we can take to overcome this crisis.
It would address four key priorities – $80 million for construction of affordable rental units, $50 million for affordable homeownership, $40 million to preserve existing housing affordability, and $30 million for programs and permanent housing to address homelessness.
Importantly, this investment will not increase property taxes or impose any new tax. Now more than ever – with inflation, supply chain and workforce issues impacting construction, increasing demand, and the high cost of housing – this is especially important and bears repeating: The bond package will not increase taxes for Columbus residents.
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The city will use future income tax revenue to cover the amount borrowed for the bond issues. It’s a time-tested strategy to increase public services without costing taxpayers more. In fact, Columbus has used this approach for more than a half-century and it has never caused a tax increase for residents.
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As our city strives to become more accessible, a thriving place to live and raise a family, and competes with similarly sized cities across the Midwest and the country, it is vital that we address our shortcomings and build on our previous successes.
This bond issue is a prime example of exactly that. It will expand on the success of the 2019 affordable housing bond passed by Columbus voters that has helped build 1,300 new affordable housing units.
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As is often said, a house is where a job sleeps at night. If we are to remain competitive as a site for new businesses, we need to address where employees live.
As the president of the Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus and Franklin County, I see every day that these aren’t just numbers, they represent real impact. Each unit we're able to build has a positive effect on someone’s family. Adequate opportunity for housing that people can actually afford to live in reduces intergenerational poverty, provides stability, and increases economic mobility.
Ultimately, it will make our entire city a more accessible, healthier, and economically vibrant place to live.
I strongly urge all Columbus residents to vote in favor of the bond package, including the affordable housing bond issue. It is a strategy that reflects our growth, and it is a win-win for taxpayers and the future of our city.
Lark T. Mallory is the president and CEO of the Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus and Franklin County.