The Planning and Development Committee of the Patagonia Town Council met Feb. 4 to discuss affordable housing. There were three presentations followed by a public hearing. Approximately eight people were in attendance, including Mayor Andy Wood.
Council Member and Committee Chair Steve Finch led off the presentations with general information. The HUD definition of ‘affordable housing’ is a maximum of 30% of household income per month is spent on rent and utilities. The Town owns six affordable units that are rented for $360/month for a one bedroom and $320/month for a studio including utilities. Turnover is low and there are 14 people on the waiting list. The School District has two affordable apartments and hopes to add two more. These apartments are prioritized for school employees but if there is no demand when they become vacant, apartments will be offered to others in the community on one-year leases.
Town Manager Ron Robinson provided some additional facts. The Town has 793 residents and 455 residential properties. Over 1/3 of those properties are owned by people without a Patagonia address. The population in Patagonia is older, with an average age of 61.
Robinson also said the Town has secured a five-acre property on Harshaw Road for affordable housing through a land trade with South 32. The plan is to build duplex rental units with 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms. Financing is not yet secure and the property will be built out in stages.
Elvia Gallaher, program manager for the local nonprofit Community Homes of Patagonia (CHOP), discussed CHOP’s affordable housing programs including home repair, homebuyer education, USDA 502 loan packaging services and the Gopher Field development of affordable homes for sale. Since its inception, CHOP’s home repair program has helped 36 homes in Patagonia. Gopher Field was purchased in 2014 as a site for affordable homeownership. CHOP’s vision is to create a community and trust where it maintains ownership of the land and individual homeowners own the house. This approach helps retain affordability while allowing homeowners to build some equity. Six homes are planned including 1, 2, and 3-bedroom models. Again, with this project, financing has not yet been secured and the property will be built out in stages.
The public hearing portion of the meeting featured several speakers. There were questions or comments about the impacts of Airbnbs on availability of rental units; the opportunity to engage private developers to build more housing through regulatory changes; and the challenges of securing public dollars for housing.
While there may be some opportunities to pursue in each of these areas, the State has placed limits on the Town’s flexibility to regulate Airbnbs and on its ability to secure state funds for housing. Nancy McCoy, a member of the P&D Committee, noted that money to develop affordable housing was a common problem.
There will be additional meetings of the P&D Committee to discuss affordable housing scheduled in the coming months.
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