Action Alert 8/24/07
Dear Loaves & Fishes Action Group Member,
What: The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors Second Hearing on Sacramento’s Inclusionary Housing Ordinance
Where: Board of Supervisors Chambers
750 H Street
Sacramento, CA 94814
When: Wednesday, August 29 at 2 PM
The Supervisors will continue to hear suggested changes to the Sacramento County’s landmark affordable housing ordinance next Wednesday. They are likely to take action to approve or reject the changes as well.
Come if you can; once again, our combined presence is a visible and powerful show of support for housing for the poorest of the poor. We are not asking for testimony. Since 30 persons testified against the proposed changes at the last hearing and only two paid representatives from the BIA testified in favor of them, the Supervisors know where the vast majority of us stand on this issue. This time we will hear directly from each Supervisor where he or she stands when it comes to safeguarding the commitment that 3% of all new apartments and homes will be reserved for extremely low income households and that 12% will be reserved for very low income and low income households.
As you know, the changes are one-sided and result from two years of closed door negotiations with building industry representatives under the guise of settling a lawsuit that had already been dismissed. When the BIA sued the county, the Sacramento Housing Alliance, represented by Legal Services of Northern California, intervened in the case and argued that the lawsuit was without merit. Judge Loren McMaster of Sacramento County’s Superior Court agreed and dismissed the lawsuit. The builders appealed to the Court of Appeals; the county asked that the hearing be twice delayed to allow more time to negotiate with the BIA. This week the Court denied the county’s second request for a continuance. The case is scheduled for a hearing in late September.
Some people have been fooled by assertions that the changes to the ordinance are minor. They are not. Among other things, they reduce the amount of land that builders must donate by 20% and the county may now pay builders between $35,000 to $65,000 per apartment for renting apartments to extremely low income families. I’ve attached a letter from the Sacramento Housing Alliance, to which Loaves & Fishes belongs, that explains some of the other changes and our opposition in more detail.
Once again, thank you for compassion for and commitment to our Loaves & Fishes guests.
Joan Burke
Director of Advocacy
Loaves & Fishes
