Constituent Question: Affordable Housing

Full Question: What is your position on affordable housing?

I am in favor of housing affordability, and I would oppose any attempts to enact policies that exclude people from living in neighborhoods or municipalities based on their background, culture, or inherent personal characteristics. That said, the cost of housing is a difficult topic without many obvious, easy-to-implement solutions. Otherwise, it would already be solved.

There are many economic market forces at work, and the long-term detrimental effects of policies such as rent control on neighborhoods and municipalities that enact them are well documented and understood by economists (despite the easy applause for politicians). On the other hand, I strongly support policies that reduce or eliminate parking minimums, which can be used as an underhanded way to prevent affordable housing, add unnecessary costs for construction, and reduce the flexibility of architects, urban planners, and residents.

I would openly invite anyone with suggestions about innovative ways to increase housing affordability without disadvantaging families whose wealth is often anchored on their most expensive financial asset (i.e. their house or condo) to contact me. I’m willing to learn, and I want to make Waltham (and Massachusetts generally) a welcoming and affordable place to live.

Parking Related Podcast Episodes:

• ⁠99 Percent Invisible “Paved Paradise” episode

• ⁠Freakonomics Radio “Parking is Hell” episode

• ⁠Cautionary Tales episode about privatizing parking meters

Obviously, those episodes are not specific to Waltham but many of the concepts discussed apply here (and really everywhere). While not always at the forefront of the housing affordability discussion, how we handle the real estate for our vehicles is tied directly to the cost of housing.