By Brendan Saunders and Howard Schickler
A congregation, a community-based organization, and a private developer —Zion Lutheran Evangelical Church, the Housing Opportunity Development Corporation, and Brinshore Development, LLC—came together around a vision: housing for working families in Deerfield. That vision crystallized into a proposal for a 48-unit rental development that they presented to the village’s Plan Commission in May.
At the May Plan Commission meeting, many residents expressed their opinions. Advocates emphasized Deerfield’s need to create room for the local workforce and their families in housing they can afford. They offered studies that demonstrated there would be no traffic impact, and local school board representatives reported that there is ample space for new students. Without offering any contrary evidence, opponents argued that the development would disrupt traffic, would burden schools, and would “not fit in the neighborhood.”
Now it is time for supporters to come together and make their voices heard!
An underlying issue driving the opposition is fear—fear that lower-income people and their children are not people of quality; that property values will decline; that the architecture of “affordable housing” is unsightly; and ultimately that mixed-income housing will not fit into the overall character of the community. Examples of these statements can be viewed on the Village of Deerfield’s website.
Ironically, those who fear affordable housing do not realize that they already know people who would qualify to live in that housing: their neighbor who was recently downsized, the emergency medical technician who works for the fire department, or the local child care worker. Although it is not unusual for neighbors to initially oppose affordable workforce housing, once the developments are created, time and time again they blend seamlessly into the fabric of their communities.
In today’s complex world, mixed-income housing not only makes economic sense, it’s also the right thing to do.
For more information about affordable housing’s impact on traffic, environment, infrastructure, and property values, see Fear of Affordable Housing: Perception vs. Reality. For further details about the need for affordable housing, see the MacArthur Foundation’s Housing Challenges Real For Many Americans, Finds 2014 How Housing Matters Survey.
The message of supporters needs to be loud and clear.
1) We want a more diverse and inclusive community to be reflected in its housing opportunities.
2) Valid community concerns about traffic, schools, safety, aesthetics, and the like can and will be addressed.
3) This development aligns with and will enhance the character of Deerfield.
In July 2015, the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released its final rules for communities to Affirmatively Further Fair Housing. This requires communities to take action to break down barriers of segregation. This can be done by creating affordable housing in areas that offer a supportive environment in which all can access a broad range of opportunities. This proposed development does just that; it opens opportunities for the local workforce that would be otherwise unavailable.
What can you do to help this project proceed and succeed? Talk to your friends and neighbors in Deerfield; let them know that this is a good development, share facts from reliable sources. Make it known that Deerfield should be a YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard) community. Attend public hearings and make your voice of support heard. Join your neighbors in Deerfield and Open Communities to endorse Welcoming Communities.