Housing for All caucus led by Connolly, Edwards looks at solutions to a crisis ‘without precedent’
State Rep. Mike Connolly at a Jan. 14 rally in Harvard Square. (Photo: Marc Levy)
The forming of a 63-member Housing for All caucus in the state Legislature was announced Thursday by Rep. Mike Connolly and Sen. Lydia Edwards.
At the inaugural meeting last week, legislators presented housing policy ideas to attempt in the current session. including homelessness prevention, tenant protections, support for first-time homebuyers, affordable-housing production, zoning reform, revenue to support local affordability, anti-discrimination and civil rights, the officials said.
“Today’s affordable-housing emergency is without any precedent in modern history, so it requires all of us to come together to seek consensus on comprehensive solutions that can address each aspect of this ongoing crisis,” said Connolly, a Democrat representing parts of Cambridge and Somerville, in a press release.
Edwards, a Boston Democrat, said she heard from families in her district every day “who are facing eviction, rent increases and housing instability. I am committed to using every tool available to address the housing crisis, deliver immediate relief to families in need and to work collaboratively to create a system that makes housing truly affordable for all.”
The purpose of the caucus is to build consensus for policies addressing all aspects of the housing crisis, Connolly and Edwards said. Initial areas of interest they named include advancing housing as a human right, working to end housing discrimination, building support for local affordable-housing policies and programs and improving current systems. “The caucus will achieve these aims by supporting legislation, advancing budget priorities, expanding the knowledge base of members, staff and the public and by building collaborative relationships with the administration, legislative leadership, local housing authorities and affordable housing developers and other key community stakeholders,” they said.
Other local officials listed in the caucus are state Reps. Steve Owens, Christine Barber and Erika Uyterhoeven, and state Sens. Pat Jehlen and Sal DiDomenico.
This post was written from a press release.
Won’t be long before the state comes in and forces Cambridge to build housing.
I’m all for it — but I would prefer that we as a community act like adults and build housing ourselves with a community driven plan.
Unfortunately there are still many who believe we can just wish away economic growth and opportunity, so I’m not sure what the outcome will be.
No rent control.
I’m open to downpayment grants, relaxed building requirements, zoning changes, or even surtax imposed on vacant units– but no rent control.
Nice to see Connolly involved in housing but if he votes for rent control that’s the last time I vote for him.
My bet is all kinds kinds of backflips to play musical chairs to benefit one group over another. When building more housing is the glaring solution
This is great news. The housing crisis needs to be addressed on a state-wide basis. Re-introducing rent control would be an obvious place to start.
Amen, RadioFreeMatt. Lots of stuff to explore! But rent control has already been tried and abandoned because it does not work. It’s like doing Social Security by lottery
Rent control is a morally indefensible position.
It is essentially taking private property without
compensating the owner of that property. Would people who propose bringing back rent control be pleased if the government decided what their wages could be?
Again, I’ve seen rent control in both New York, where I grew up, and in Cambridge where I’ve lived for a long time. One of the consequences of rent control is that people neither want to build new housing, nor keep existing housing in good condition. Why should they if they can’t get a decent return on their capital. And some of that capital is owned by low income owners who face rising costs, including taxes, every year.
I’m all in favor of affordable housing. If the City of Cambridge wants to fund it, then we should do it. But, we shouldn’t have landlords fund what is a city problem. It is unfair in so many ways.
I’m not a landlord, never plan on being a landlord. Any councilor that votes to implement rent control will never receive a vote from me in perpetuity.
Rent control does nothing to house the people already without a home. It disincentivizes construction of new homes. It encourages people to stay in homes that no longer match their needs for fear of resetting their rate.
Just build housing. It isn’t complicated, at all.
It’s remarkable to me that the people always pushing for rent control are almost exactly the same folks that have historically blocked all housing development. This is a regional issue and needs a regional solution. Rent control does more for politicians than anyone else.
I really don’t comprehend people who think rent control is productive. You give a good deal to renters without any effort to address a shortage in available housing. Or just build a lot more housing so that landlords have less leverage in charging higher rents.