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Ashland low-cost housing lagging Study: Sales, rental trends scale high at cost of diversity By TONY BOOM ASHLAND - Where have all the young families gone? A new study shows a 21 percent decline in Ashland residents aged 35 to 44 during the last decade. At the same time, the average home sale price increased 147 percent to $277,000 - according to the housing needs analysis commisioned by the city and prepared by ECONorthwest of Eugene. Among the other findings in the study are that Ashland's population is getting older at a rate far exceeding that of the state; home ownership is well below that of other Jackson County communities; and it would take as many at 800 low-cost rental units to keep those earning near minimum wage from leaving the city. "The interpretation is that you are losing young families, probably ... because that's the prime years for home-buying, and they can't find affordable housing to purchase," said Bob Parker, a planner with ECONorthwest, an economic consulting firm with separate offices in Portland and Seattle. Affordable housing advocates have long contended rising prices and rents make Ashland a less-diverse community, cause a decline in school enrollment and force low-wage workers to live elsewhere. "Nothing surprised anybody on the housing commission," said commissioner Nancy Richardson. "It substantiates what we already knew. It's always good to have those statistics down to help educate the public." Ashland paid $15,000 for the analysis that is the first part of a housing plan the commission will develop for City Council consideration. The report includes recommendations for the city to consider to increase affordability. The report will supplement a housing study prepared in 2000. That study was based on data from 1998 or earlier. The new study provides more current data. A Portland firm will produce a more specific action plan based upon ECONorthwest's analysis. Among the report's findings: � The city's population of residents aged 45 to 54 increased by 54 percent, compared to 36 percent for the state. The number of residents over age 65 increased by 20 percent. � The city's home ownership rate is 12 percent lower than the rest of Jackson County. � Service and retail jobs, the fastest-growing employment sectors in Ashland, don't pay enough for households to cover fair market rents. � Multi-family housing represented only 9 percent of construction over the last 11 years. The city has a relatively small amount of land zoned for multi-family uses. � Students, baby boomers and retirees dominate the housing market. These groups tend to form non-family households. � Low-income households in Ashland increased to 42 percent of the population, an jump of 7 percent between 1998 and 2001. Among the report's recommendations: � Develop more multi-family housing. This could be accomplished by designating more land for apartments and restricting construction in some zones to rentals. � Encourage the construction of affordable single-family housing. A decrease in lot size and more land for manufactured homes is proposed � Reduce development fees for low-income housing. � Develop 800 housing units over the next 20 years that will rent for $250 with government assistance to serve the need of those earning less than $10,000 annually. The report's researchers found just one studio in the $300 to $399 range in a survey of property managers. The call for such a large number of low-cost units was used to illustrate the problem, said Parker of ECONorthwest. "It's more of an eye-opener statement. It projects a goal that I don't think is truly obtainable," said Planning Director John McLaughlin. "My feeling is that the community and the developers and Realtors are being asked to shoulder a very unrealizable and unrealistic burden on behalf of the rest of the community," said Tom Bradley of Commercial Property Management about the 800-unit goal. Bradley also questioned some of the study's statistics. He noted that his firm did not participate in the survey of property managers. He said his company has about 15 to 20 rentals under $400 per month and 198 "quad" shared-living arrangements primarily for students, with rents $250 per month. Housing commissioners were cautioned the rental survey only covers about 10 percent of the town's units, said Parker. Census data to be released this summer will give a more comprehensive picture, he said. City officials have already taken a preliminary look at how to modify existing ordinances to incorporate some of the suggestions, said McLaughlin. Reach Ashland bureau reporter Tony Boom at 482-4651, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.