Tag: Section 8 housing

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Obama’s last act is to force suburbs to be less white and less wealthy

Obama-Golf

By Paul Sperry

May 8, 2016 | 7:30am

Modal Trigger

Hillary’s rumored running mate, Housing Secretary Julian Castro, is cooking up a scheme to reallocate funding for Section 8 housing to punish suburbs for being too white and too wealthy.

The scheme involves super-sizing vouchers to help urban poor afford higher rents in pricey areas, such as Westchester County, while assigning them government real estate agents called “mobility counselors” to secure housing in the exurbs.

Castro plans to launch the Section 8 reboot this fall, even though a similar program tested a few years ago in Dallas has been blamed for shifting violent crime to affluent neighborhoods.

It’s all part of a grand scheme to forcibly desegregate inner cities and integrate the outer suburbs.

Anticipating NIMBY resistance, Castro last month threatened to sue suburban landlords for discrimination if they refuse even Section 8 tenants with criminal records. And last year, he implemented a powerful new regulation — “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” — that pressures all suburban counties taking federal grant money to change local zoning laws to build more low-income housing (landlords of such properties are required to accept Section 8 vouchers).

Castro is expected to finalize the new regulation, known as “Small-Area Fair Market Rents” (SAFMR), this October, in the last days of the Obama presidency.

It will set voucher rent limits by ZIP code rather than metro area, the current formula, which makes payments relatively small. For example, the fair market rent for a one-bedroom in New York City is about $1,250, which wouldn’t cover rentals in leafy areas of Westchester County, such as Mamaroneck, where Castro and his social engineers seek to aggressively resettle Section 8 tenants.

https://nypost.com/2016/05/08/obamas-last-act-is-to-force-suburbs-to-be-less-white-and-less-wealthy/

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We need serious discussion of the combination of these affordable housing developments and the planning board’s decision to allow hundreds of new families to move into a few acres of land in downtown Ridgewood

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We need serious discussion of the combination of these affordable housing developments and the planning board’s decision to allow hundreds of new families to move into a few acres of land in downtown Ridgewood. I think one of the consequences of the housing projects approved by the planning board will be to set ourselves up for these very builder suits as well as claims of “spot zoning.”

Affordable housing is a great goal. But what we completely don’t understand is how the courts will enforce the means to that goal. So, we are on the verge of approving 400 to 500 new family units in the middle of town at selected sites. Some of that will be designated for low income. What if it is not enough in the eyes of some judge? What if the judge measures the need for low income housing against the entire town as a whole. Is it possible the judge could say we need to designate 50% of all new housing to low income?

Frankly, that might bring a nice diversity to the town and I think we all love to hear about hard working families that are given a chance. But, what will the effect be on the speculators / builders who think they just hit the jackpot with the planning board. Low income means less profit. Will that profit come out of the facades of the buildings we have to look at? Will it come out of the taxes the developers said would be generated when the developers go in and demand tax reductions? Will it come out of the structures themselves so that we are the cusp of creating tenements in our downtown. Remember, the planning board did not approve “quality housing.” It approved increased housing density, period. If the developers are forced to give up profit by the courts, they will have no incentive to build quality units and we will have no ability to stop them from building sub-standard units.

And then there is the issue of surrounding properties. Once one property owner sees that they can tear down a store and put up 50 to 100 family units, why won’t they? The planning board randomly picked spots in town and said they were suitable for high density living. There is no rhyme or reason to what they did, other than that is what the developers asked for first. The planning board did not “plan”, it “reacted” to what the developers demanded. These same developers or the next set will come in and ask for the same treatment. And when they don’t get it, they will make the same arguments that hoodwinked the current planning board – – we need to do this to satisfy affordable housing rules. And regardless of what the planning board says, they only need to convince one judge that they are right.

The Village council needs to seriously consider these issues in detail before it approves the massive over-development of downtown Ridgewood.

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N.J. Supreme Court to hear arguments in affordable housing regulations case

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N.J. Supreme Court to hear arguments in affordable housing regulations case

December 4, 2014, 5:23 PM    Last updated: Thursday, December 4, 2014, 5:23 PM
By MICHAEL PHILLIS
State house bureau |
The Record
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The state Supreme Court announced Thursday that it will hear arguments in a case that will decide who gets to write the rules that govern affordable housing regulations, a long-standing issue that could impact every town in the state.

The state Supreme Court on Thursday announced it would hear oral arguments in a case that could transfer the power of writing affordable housing guidelines from the executive branch to the judiciary.

Oral arguments are scheduled for Jan. 6.

The Council on Affordable Housing, whose members are appointed by the governor, is tasked with  which is in charge of writing affordable housing rules., The council missed a state Supreme Court deadline to approve new guidelines, a time limit set by the Supreme Court as part of an ongoing lawsuit. After they missed the deadline, Fair Share Housing Center, an advocacy group focused on affordable housing, asked that the courts judiciary to take over the process.

The council operates within the executive branch. The A change in venue for affordable housing law would be significant because Governor Christie, who has loudly criticized affordable housing mandates, would have a downsized role in the rule making process. Instead, the court system that originally said affordable housing was a right would gain a new role in how it is implemented.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/n-j-supreme-court-to-hear-arguments-in-affordable-housing-regulations-case-1.1146732