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The affordable dream By AMBER FOSSEN Ashland Daily Tidings Affordable housing in Ashland is no longer just a concept. Studio apartments at $325, two bedrooms at $523 and a three bedroom, 1 1/2 bath apartment for $582 are under construction on Garfield Street. The Ashland Community Land Trust is constructing six new affordable apartments, helping to address a long-standing problem for many Ashland and would-be Ashland residents. Otis Blankenship lays sewer pipe Monday at the community land trust housing under construction on Garfield Street near Main Street. Ashland Daily Tidings/Denise Baratta Tammi Spencer, a founding member of the ACLT and a member of the board of directors, said the trust was formed in 1999 in direct response to escalating housing costs. "We were thinking about the lack of affordable housing in Ashland," Spencer said, "and we were trying to develop a way to develop and sustain affordable housing." The ACLT, founded in a cooperative effort between the Ashland Housing Commission and ACCESS, Inc., was the first Oregon land trust to have housing units established and available to the community. "Last week, we submitted a community development block grant proposal to purchase another couple of units," Spencer said. "We are working and striving to get more units on the ground." Spencer said affordable housing is not just an issue for really low income or homeless families, it's an issue that affects the entire city. If families can't afford to live here, they move to other areas, taking their children with them. "The closing of Briscoe Elementary, it's all tied together," she said, later adding, "Home ownership strengthens the community in more ways than one." The community land trust provides affordable housing by purchasing the land, then selling the constructed homes to qualified buyers, leasing the land beneath on a 99-year, transferable, inheritable lease. This arrangement removes the cost of the land from the transaction, making homes more affordable. The lease agreement signed by the home owner pledges them to a resale formula that preserves most of the equity in the home for future community members. If an owner chooses to sell, the land trust is given the opportunity to buy the home first and will then select a buyer from the ACLT's list of qualified members. The ACLT is a nonprofit organization and while the homes increase in cost over time by the percentage of equity promised the previous owner plus transaction costs, they are below the market cost increases of a comparable home. The trust's first three townhouses were sold to community members with incomes below 80 percent of area median income. Those homes sold for 75 percent of the market rate and would be available at about 50 percent of market value today, according to Spencer. The six units on Garfield Street, scheduled to be completed in early 2004, will go fast. "It's on a first come, first serve basis," Spencer said. Each unit has dishwashers, ranges and air conditioning and the two story complex includes on site laundry facilities. To qualify, applicants must be earning at least 1 1/2 times the rent of the unit they are applying for. However, there is an income ceiling. Residents earning income ranging from $17,350 annually for one person to $28,700 for six persons do not qualify. Applicants will also need solid rental references. It is not necessary to be a member of the ACLT to qualify, but Spencer said members receive updates on projects giving them a heads-up on new affordable housing projects in the area. The ACLT is hosting a community awareness meeting at 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 30, at the Mobius Gallery, 281 Fourth St., for community members interested in applying for a Garfield rental or for more information about the ACLT and future projects. Seating is limited. For more information, contact the ACLT at 858-3313 or 840-2971 or by e-mail at [email protected] The nonprofit has approximately 100 members and is looking to engage more community members in the plight for affordable housing. "We're wanting to let people know we're here and learn about all the great things we're doing and to be a part of it," Spencer said. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -