Letter to Editor | YES For Homes is Vital

— from Pegi Groundwater —

I am writing to urge voters to support the Yes for Homes ballot measure in November.

We are extremely fortunate to live on these beautiful islands, but staying here is a daily struggle for many of the people who provide the services that we all depend on. Housing prices have surged in the San Juan islands over the past 10 years, but wages have stayed low. Our county has the second highest per capita income (including passive income), but the next to lowest average wages, of all the counties in Washington.

As a member of the OPAL CLT Board for the past couple of years, I have learned just how difficult it is for many of the people who provide the services we depend upon to live here. We have had teachers, health care workers, OPALCO employees, fire fighters, retail service workers, and artists apply to purchase or rent OPAL homes. Employers tell OPAL they struggle to hire employees, primarily because of the high cost of housing. That is why the Yes for Homes campaign was created – to help provide funding to create affordable housing for the people we depend on in our daily lives.

There is no typical OPAL homeowner or renter, but many elements of their stories are similar. Some have been approved for bank financing, but can’t find decent housing in their price range. Others have recently lost a long-term rental due to the sale of the property or the return of a member of the landlord’s family. Many wind up in temporary or substandard housing while they search for a permanent home to rent or buy. Others get discouraged and leave the islands.

OPAL works hard to meet the need for affordable housing on Orcas, as do the CLTs on San Juan and Lopez Islands, but the cost of building affordable housing projects has increased steadily over the years. Our community has been extremely generous, but private philanthropy is not enough to fund these projects. A combination of grants, loans, governmental funding and private giving is necessary.

Passage of the Yes for Homes ballot measure would provide an additional source of funding that OPAL and the SJI and Lopez CLTs could use as seed money to obtain grants, government or private financing . Please vote Yes in November.