Mayor seeks affordable housing law - He proposes requiring that developers earmark a portion of new units for rent or sale to the poor or middle-class. Plan gets mixed reviews.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called Wednesday for a law that would require new housing developments in Los Angeles to include units affordable to the poor and middle-class -- an idea floated unsuccessfully by city officials two years ago amid opposition from developers and neighborhood groups.
Villaraigosa said the proposal was necessary to address a housing crisis that has made it difficult for even middle-income families to afford a home, chipping away at the very workforce that stabilizes the local economy.
Housing created by such laws is usually targeted at individuals or families who make below-average salaries. The average household income in Los Angeles is about $44,000, while the median price of a home is more than $400,000 and average rents are more than $1,500 in many places, according to city officials.
Acknowledging that his plan could scare off some developers, Villaraigosa said he would try to help projects stay cost-effective by offering incentives, such as giving builders the right to construct more units or to set aside less space for parking. Villaraigosa's aides said they were still debating whether the plan would apply citywide or just along mass transit corridors.
"I believe it is time to have a grown-up conversation about the gravity of the crisis of affordable housing in Los Angeles," Villaraigosa told a gathering of developers and business executives at a UCLA housing summit sponsored by the Los Angeles Business Council. "Only with shared responsibility can we address this situation."
Such a stance is likely to play well with Villaraigosa's political base. The labor unions that form his most solid block of support are filled with rank-and-file members who are teachers, police officers, nurses, secretaries and blue-collar workers who are usually paid much less than other professionals.
Developers gave Villaraigosa's plan mixed reviews. Some predicted it would stifle development in a city where the high cost of land and a cumbersome planning and permitting process already make it difficult to build affordable units at a profit. One industry representative urged the mayor to pursue a voluntary affordable housing program, enticing developers with incentives.
"I think it's a flawed policy," said Holly Schroeder, chief executive of the Building Industry Assn. of Los Angeles and Ventura counties. "It puts the responsibility and the burden on the shoulders of developers when what we're talking about is a broader societal issue.
