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MONDAY February 23, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels November 21, 2003 City naive about housing problems? By Tim Bousquet Tidings Correspondent Saying that the community lacks a true commitment to the issue, the man hired last summer to administer Ashland's affordable housing program has quit and left town. "I don't want to knock Ashland," Gary Collard said Thursday from his Sacramento home. "But I think there was a lot of naivete up there, a feeling that you can address the affordable housing issue without making changes in land-use policies or committing funds for it. They didn't quite understand how it works." Collord was especially frustrated with what he called the unwillingness of city officials to properly fund affordable housing programs. "If you're going to have programs like assistance to first-time home buyers and rehab loans, you need local funds to leverage state and federal funds. But city officials didn't see it that way." Additionally, Collord said, the city is unwilling to make significant zoning changes. "I'm not necessarily talking about growth. But you have to create land-use opportunities for affordable housing. You need higher densities for rentals and condominiums. The city leadership reflects the will of the citizenry, and people don't want Ashland to grow or increase in population. They want to maintain it as a small town." Krista Berry, the president of the Ashland Community Land Trust, was present when Collord announced his resignation. "He felt that there was a lot of lip service given to affordable housing and not a lot of action," she said. "He felt his job was pointless." Berry is similarly frustrated. "Ashland is a liberal, active town, and a town where people recognize that there's a need for affordable housing. But they don't want it in their back yard. Ashland talks about affordable housing, but doesn't make it possible." "If you want affordable housing," Berry continued, "you have to contribute a lot of money to provide for it, and that means taxes. And if you're not going to provide that money the affordable housing is not going to exist. "Basically, people don't really want it. They want land prices to go up. If they own something, their land prices are going up. The haves like it the way it is and the have-nots can't do anything about it." "Affordable housing isn't a welfare issue," Berry added. "Firefighters and school teachers can't afford to live in Ashland. You need to make $100,000 a year to live here." City Councilor Cate Hartzell, who sits on the city's Housing Commission, has a more nuanced view of the matter. "Gary's skill set and personal style was different from what we needed," Hartzell said. "He was quiet, and sat in the back row of meetings. He was a newcomer to town, and brought his family with him. I think there were personal reasons playing into his decision to go back to Sacramento. "Personally and professionally, he wasn't a good fit for the job." "This is a diverse community," she explained. "There are people who think the city shouldn't be in this business at all. They think the market should determine these things without our interference. Others of us feel that the market is terribly unfair, and we need to do something about it. Our community will probably never agree 100 percent on this issue. That's why we need leadership and outreach, spreading the word about why we need to do this. "What we need right now is someone who knows the affordable housing issues, who works well with people, can tolerate conflicting viewpoints, and move forward." The city has re-advertised the position, and hopes to fill it in the next few weeks, said Hartzell. "I'm committed to addressing this issue," she added. "Will we solve it? I don't think we solve most of our social problems. There's not an end game. But we can make progress." Collord, meanwhile, is in career limbo. "I'm trying to return to my old job with the California Department of Housing and Community Development," he said. "But I have to wait until they figure out what they're doing with the state budget." Removed from Ashland, Collord remains doubtful that the community will properly address the affordable housing issue. "Ashland has such a large problem that they need to move aggressively and quickly, and I don't see the city ever being able to do that." DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Site Search: A new improved archive search is coming! Look for it in mid-February! .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - ODOT Road Cams