Below is a story that ran in the Cap Times - slightly better coverage than the Wisc State Journal. Although the spin in the media was "affordable housing" Bicycle Federation fought hard to have the report recognize that housing is not "affordable" if it is only accessible by car.
The full report recommends compact, mixed-use development that can be accessed by transit, walking, biking, or other "alternative" transportation forms. We are very happy that people are finally beginning to look at the full cost of car use and ownership. That's alot of $$ that families and communities could be spending in other ways. http://www.madison.com/captimes/news/local/27382.php Falk boosts affordable housing New initiative backed by housing, biz groups By Bill Novak June 12, 2002 Integrating affordable housing with good land use and transportation is the goal of a new effort by County Executive Kathleen Falk and Dane County's housing, building, business and environmental community. "The Housing-Land Use Partnership will work to make affordable housing and land use complementary and not competitive," Falk said Tuesday at a news conference. Dane County is contributing $400,000 from the federally funded HOME program as seed money to support the housing development fund. "Three years ago, a coalition of environmentalists, builders, Realtors and others worked together to develop and promote passage of the New Conservation Fund," Falk said. "Now we're ready to take on another big challenge - affordable housing and good land use." A major recommendation from an 18-page report on affordable housing is to establish a housing development entity as a public-private partnership, with dollars raised from business, nonprofit and local government sources, to promote affordable housing development in Dane County. Rather than just putting affordable housing wherever it fits, the new housing organization would purchase land in areas that make the most sense, such as in transportation corridors and away from farmland and rural areas; sell the land to developers of affordable housing; and work with local governments to develop better zoning and development guidelines so homes could be built at a faster pace. "Because of rising land costs, many said it would be impossible to build affordable housing," said Bill Perkins, executive director of the Wisconsin Partnership of Housing Development. "But we just closed on property in Sun Prairie that's affordable, so it can be done." Perkins was referring to The Uplands, a new development under construction in Sun Prairie where a sizable percentage of homes and rental units are earmarked for sale and rent to people earning below the Dane County median income. Getting groups as diverse as the Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin, the Madison Audubon Society, the Madison Area Builders Association and the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin to sign on as supporters of the plan is unusual, but Falk said it demonstrates just how important affordable housing and good land use are to all who live and work in Dane County. "Our goal is to have a menu of housing choices, so working people can buy homes and find rental units," Falk said. "We are looking at a multitude of solutions, so you can live in really livable neighborhoods. That's the challenge that brought all of us together." Other organizations taking part in the Housing-Land Use Partnership include the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, League of Women Voters of Dane County, 1000 Friends of Wisconsin, Trout Unlimited, Citizens for a Better Environment and the Four Lakes Group of the Sierra Club. Kevin King of the Realtors Association said maintaining quality of life in Dane County is compatible with having a healthy housing market. "We can't have a high quality of life without a healthy housing market," he said. "Dane County continues to grow. ... We must work together and plan for that growth." Enis Ragland, chief of staff to Madison Mayor Sue Bauman, said the housing initiative will be a boost for the working class. "This could be called work force housing," Ragland said. "There is a great need in Madison and Dane County for this type of housing. If we are to maintain a strong work force and a strong community, we need work force housing." _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.danenet.org/mailman/listinfo/bikies
