Janey seeks gentrification hearing
Councilor proposes vouchers for hard-hit Roxbury
District 7 City Councilor Kim Janey is advocating a city-funded voucher program for housing as a response to gentrification and displacement in Roxbury.
Janey will submit an order for a hearing on gentrification during today’s City Council meeting.
“Roxbury is an area that has been hit harder than others,” Janey told the Herald. “I’m deeply concerned that people are having to move out. It’s becoming more and more difficult for families to stay in the city and I want to make sure that appropriate city agencies and impacted resident have a say in this.”
While housing costs went up 36 percent citywide from 2010 to 2015 according to the Imagine Boston 2030 study, Roxbury in particular has seen increases of up to 70 percent, a surge that Janey said is forcing residents out.
According to the study, 21 percent of renters and owners spend more than half of their income on housing. The waitlist for Section 8 public housing is consistently as long as 40,000 people.
Janey said one way to help with that problem is through a city-funded voucher program that can be funded by higher taxes on luxury condos.
“They’re paying the same property tax as everyone else,” Janey said. “That’s money that we could use to help offset the housing crisis. We need affordable units.”
Renters make up 81 percent of Roxbury residents, well over the citywide 66 percent, according to the Boston Planning and Development Association. The population has risen by 20 percent, and rising rates have priced many families out of the neighborhood. The median monthly housing cost in Roxbury is $1,035, according to the American Communities Survey, which is conducted by the United States Census Bureau. The survey puts median income for Roxbury households at $30,278.
Janey is calling for “development without displacement” in today’s order and says the city should collectively redefine “affordability.” She wants the hearing to include representatives from the city and neighborhood groups such as Reclaim Roxbury and the Roxbury Neighborhood Council.
“I want to be clear and make sure we’re welcoming new neighbors, but we have to make sure that there is something for all us,” Janey said.