Help people keep homes amid growth, study says

As neighborhoods near downtown Milwaukee continue attracting new housing, city officials can take steps to help existing residents stay in their homes.

That’s according to a new study reviewed Tuesday by the Common Council’s Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee.

It concluded that most areas near downtown are not seeing widespread displacement of lower-income residents.

Rents of older existing apartments are increasing modestly in those neighborhoods, such as Walker’s Point and Harambee, as new homes and apartments are developed, according to the study, conducted by the Department of City Development.

Lack of affordable housing is affected more by the low income of residents rather than rising rents, said Nolan Zaroff, a city senior planner.

But, city officials can take steps to help homeowners keep their houses, and help renters become homeowners, in neighborhoods near downtown, said Sam Leichtling, the department’s longrange planning manager.

That includes the department’s Strong Neighborhoods Plan, which features forgivable loans for making repairs to existing homes, he said.

Leichtling also cited Mayor Tom Barrett’s new plan to build or improve 10,000 housing units over the next 10 years.

Barrett’s plan includes using tax incremental financing districts to help develop new affordable apartments. Development firms within those districts could recover some of their costs through the new building’s property tax revenue.

The study’s other recommendations include making sure existing residents have a voice when new developments are proposed in their neighborhoods.

The key is to continue encouraging new development without displacing community residents, said Ald. Russell Stamper and Ald. Milele Coggs, both committee members.

Council members said they hear from residents who are worried about being able to continue afford living in their longtime neighborhoods.

Ald. Jose Perez, whose district includes Walker’s Point, said some homeowners have been approached by real estate agents who are pressuring them to sell their properties.

He said city officials need to help residents fight such “predatory speculation.”

“We want people to determine their own destiny,” Perez said.