Affordability Action Plan
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2017 10:26 am
Colleagues,
Today I am excited to present an item that I have been working on for many months now, with the valued support of my co-sponsors on Council and a diverse coalition of community leaders.
It’s no secret that we are at a critical point in our city when it comes to affordability. Austinites have given us a clear mandate to address the rapidly rising cost of living in Austin in order to slow gentrification, address economic segregation, keep long-time residents in their homes and enable seniors and the rest of us to remain in our great City.
In light of this, I realized it was critical to make a pact with the community about how dedicated this Council is, and will continue to be, to addressing affordability. Thank you to the Mayor and to Council Members Flannigan, Houston, and Kitchen for their help and support in crafting our Affordability Action Plan.
As we know, affordability is a complex and multifaceted subject. Its meaning, and how to best address it, often lies in the perspective of those pondering the issue. As a Council, we have been elected by different constituencies with different priorities when it comes to affordability. I believe that we have more goals in common than not, and I’m hoping that this Affordability Action Plan will allow us to come together as a group and attack our affordability issues from several different angles.
Among those in the community who have been central and critical to this effort are groups as diverse as One Voice Central Texas and the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. These groups - with the dedication of many others - came together, acknowledged each other’s positions, and intentionally began an effort to develop this social pact, an affordability omnibus.
Thus far, this effort has earned the support of the Austin Independent Business Alliance, Austin Branch NAACP, One Voice Central Texas, Greater Austin Chamber, Home Builder’s Association of Austin, Austin Regional Manufacturer’s Association, Downtown Austin Alliance, Austin Technology Council, Goodwill Central Texas, US Hispanic Contractors Association, Greater Asian Chamber of Commerce, the Real Estate Council of Austin, and Associated General Contractors of Greater Austin.
With the help and guidance of my colleagues on Council, we have expanded on what these organizations started in order to put together an Affordability Action Plan that lays out how we intend to address our affordability crisis, including acknowledging ongoing initiatives as well as identifying new ones. Although this plan doesn’t include every possible measure we might eventually undertake, I hope that we have compiled a package that allows us to find consensus and move the ball forward more quickly.
Among many other measures, this Affordability Action Plan includes ways to reform the way the City determines its budget, highlights our housing needs, and provide opportunities for our locally-owned, small businesses to thrive.
While my co-sponsors have been over every detail together in order to compile a document that we can all be proud to stand behind, I wanted to share it with the rest of council as soon as possible. We will be hosting a press conference on Thursday at 9:00 a.m., prior to the Council meeting. I invite you to join us and other community leaders there. I look forward to your comments, and am hopeful that we will gain your support.
Resolution - http://assets.austintexas.gov/austincou ... 02540.docx
Affordability Action Plan - http://assets.austintexas.gov/austincou ... 01943.docx
Kindly,
Ellen Troxclair
Today I am excited to present an item that I have been working on for many months now, with the valued support of my co-sponsors on Council and a diverse coalition of community leaders.
It’s no secret that we are at a critical point in our city when it comes to affordability. Austinites have given us a clear mandate to address the rapidly rising cost of living in Austin in order to slow gentrification, address economic segregation, keep long-time residents in their homes and enable seniors and the rest of us to remain in our great City.
In light of this, I realized it was critical to make a pact with the community about how dedicated this Council is, and will continue to be, to addressing affordability. Thank you to the Mayor and to Council Members Flannigan, Houston, and Kitchen for their help and support in crafting our Affordability Action Plan.
As we know, affordability is a complex and multifaceted subject. Its meaning, and how to best address it, often lies in the perspective of those pondering the issue. As a Council, we have been elected by different constituencies with different priorities when it comes to affordability. I believe that we have more goals in common than not, and I’m hoping that this Affordability Action Plan will allow us to come together as a group and attack our affordability issues from several different angles.
Among those in the community who have been central and critical to this effort are groups as diverse as One Voice Central Texas and the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. These groups - with the dedication of many others - came together, acknowledged each other’s positions, and intentionally began an effort to develop this social pact, an affordability omnibus.
Thus far, this effort has earned the support of the Austin Independent Business Alliance, Austin Branch NAACP, One Voice Central Texas, Greater Austin Chamber, Home Builder’s Association of Austin, Austin Regional Manufacturer’s Association, Downtown Austin Alliance, Austin Technology Council, Goodwill Central Texas, US Hispanic Contractors Association, Greater Asian Chamber of Commerce, the Real Estate Council of Austin, and Associated General Contractors of Greater Austin.
With the help and guidance of my colleagues on Council, we have expanded on what these organizations started in order to put together an Affordability Action Plan that lays out how we intend to address our affordability crisis, including acknowledging ongoing initiatives as well as identifying new ones. Although this plan doesn’t include every possible measure we might eventually undertake, I hope that we have compiled a package that allows us to find consensus and move the ball forward more quickly.
Among many other measures, this Affordability Action Plan includes ways to reform the way the City determines its budget, highlights our housing needs, and provide opportunities for our locally-owned, small businesses to thrive.
While my co-sponsors have been over every detail together in order to compile a document that we can all be proud to stand behind, I wanted to share it with the rest of council as soon as possible. We will be hosting a press conference on Thursday at 9:00 a.m., prior to the Council meeting. I invite you to join us and other community leaders there. I look forward to your comments, and am hopeful that we will gain your support.
Resolution - http://assets.austintexas.gov/austincou ... 02540.docx
Affordability Action Plan - http://assets.austintexas.gov/austincou ... 01943.docx
Kindly,
Ellen Troxclair