In Boulder County, rising housing costs and a lack of affordable housing are pricing out the working and middle classes, which negatively affects the county’s economy as a whole.
As we show in our Boulder County TRENDS Report, housing prices are rising faster than incomes, which puts tremendous pressure on our economy. We’re grateful to our many grantees who are tackling this challenge head-on, including the OUR Center.
“For people affected by a lack of affordable housing in Longmont, we recently helped facilitate self-advocacy training,” says Edwina Salazar, Executive Director. “Many of those folks have gone before the City Council to testify about affordable housing issues, and the impact the housing crisis has on them.
“The training helped give them a voice, and overcome their inhibitions about expressing their concerns.”
According to Salazar, one disabled resident described to council members that her rent had increased 30%, exceeding her income; but finding another affordable place to live was proving to be difficult.
“In addition to people with disabilities, seniors are also feeling the effects of the housing crunch,” Salazar continues. “Many of them have given to the community for many years, as volunteers and otherwise…but they can no longer afford to live here.
“What we’re doing is empowering people to have a voice on issues that affect them, and helping them find the confidence they need to speak to others about their situations and what they think would be helpful. It’s been very gratifying to give them a structure for that.”
In response, according to Salazar, the Longmont City Council is “feeling pressure” to act on the community- (and county-)wide affordable housing crisis. “They’re in the process of analyzing the situation and deciding what they’ll do to address the issues.
“It’s definitely a crisis, and much worse than this time last year. After the 2014 floods, we saw the impact immediately – rents went up, leases weren’t renewed, and many residents were forced to downsize, and move in with family or friends.
“For many of these people, this is their home. They were born and raised here, and have contributed to the community…but they can no longer afford to live here. It’s up to all of us – not just local government – to decide what kind of community we want to be.
“Communities of faith, public partnerships, affordable housing developers, private citizens and others play a role in bringing assets – like land – and other solutions to the table. That is, if we as a community agree to be inclusive of all income and education levels, and a diversity of ethnicities.”
