Recent Articles

YIMBYs: It Was Never About Affordability

Affordability has been a ruse for creating market rate housing.

Affordability has been a ruse for creating market rate housing.

By
• Topics: Bellingham, Government, Planning,

[Guest Writer, Scott Jones, is a community advocate supporting a wholistic solution to help residents thrive. As a founder of Save The Waterfront, HelpingHousing.org, and a long time board member of the Bellingham Food Bank he supports government actions that help those in need.]

Bellingham has been facing a housing crisis for almost a decade. It has not been solved, because the true crisis has been co-opted by lobbyist groups, looking to densify without regard for our workforce who cannot afford the cost of housing.

The commonly accepted definition of “Affordability”—with a capital “A," and intentionally used in this article—is housing availability that costs NO more than 30% of a household's income. Then there is ‘a’ffordability, which encompasses all levels of financial means, i.e., where a family cannot afford the $1.5 million home and must accept a $1 million dollar home instead. The issue of ‘affordability’ is not to be scoffed at and is important to solve, but it is not THE Bellingham Housing Crisis (1). 

Unfortunately, the Whatcom Housing Alliance (see below), some members of the Bellingham Planning Commission (2) and the Bellingham City Council, the leadership of the Whatcom Democrats (3,4,5,6),  and lobbying groups such as Sightlines.org. have been using Affordability as a ruse. They have been using the community’s desire for Affordability to achieve market-rate densification.

Their hidden agenda of universal market rate density is draining Bellingham's capacity to solve the Affordability crisis for those in need. Our leaders are being persuaded that they are doing all they can for Affordability, as industry lobbyists like the Whatcom Housing Alliance and organizations like Sightline feed them “solutions.” These solutions are touted as helping Affordability, but in the end, they have only helped the private housing industry (7). 

A bait and switch:

Due to the manipulative influence of the Whatcom Housing Alliance (8) and Sightline, the city may have just lost a valuable tool for Affordable housing: Parking Minimums. Recently, a temporary one-year ordinance (City Council: 5-2) (9) eliminated parking requirements city-wide, citing a model for a proposed Old Town development. This passage was further bolstered by numerous Sightline.org and WHA articles that misrepresented the connection between parking and Affordability. 

Negating parking requirements allows developers to increase profits through more buildable units, and reduces costs, increasing profits further, by not requiring the creation of parking stalls. There's no evidence from the Old Town example or national studies (10) – that this will lead to lower rents or home prices, without Inclusionary Zoning.

What did the Whatcom Housing Alliance’s’ manager say about the Affordability and Parking Minimums? 


“These (parking) mandates fly in the face of a brutal housing crisis,” wrote Scott Pelton, manager of the Whatcom Housing Alliance, in an April 20 email. “For every parking spot that we require, we’re taking up valuable building space for affordable housing.” – Cascadia Daily – June 23rd, 2023 

While reducing parking minimums in dense areas like Old Town can be a legitimate way to increase housing units, using "affordability" as justification for a parking reduction is misleading. This widely used approach, such as arguments used during the 2019 ADU rezoning, undermines efforts to create genuinely Affordable housing for those who need it most.

Along with the Whatcom Housing Alliance (WHA) and Sightline, the Whatcom Democrats, led by Andrew Reding through January 2025, are also focusing on density and market rate housing over Affordability for those in need. In 2023, the Whatcom Democrat’s resolution (11) on the reduction of parking minimums “recognized” Affordability as a critical need and cited a Whatcom Housing Alliance article (12) on the topic seven times. Unfortunately, the Dem’s resolution did not require that Affordable housing be created in exchange for the parking reduction. Instead, they focused on market rate solutions, which in the expensive housing market of Bellingham, cannot be Affordable (13). 

As a “progressive organization,” the lack of focus on Affordability is unacceptable. 

Influencing an illegitimate agenda

The Whatcom Housing Alliance's influential position in our community allows its messaging to significantly impact city leadership. This influence can extend to the mayor, the Bellingham Planning Department, and the City Council, potentially leading to policies that fail to address, or even worsen, the Affordability crisis. 


“…the reason we decided to advance [removal of parking minimums] for Council’s consideration not connecting it to affordability right now is because we are in a crisis and we wanted Council’s actions to be common with the crisis…” – Mayor Kim Lund, January 25th, 2025, South Hill Neighborhood Association Meeting (14)

 

Click To Enlarge

Unfortunately, the mayor is referring to a housing supply shortage stemming from the Great Recession that started in 2008, as well as the generally high cost of market-rate housing. But this is not the crisis. City projections for the next 20 years indicate that for those earning 50-120% of the Area Median Income (AMI) will only need a 10% increase in housing supply. In contrast, the 0-50% AMI group requires a 150% increase in supply. The true crisis is not a general lack of housing, but a severe shortage of Affordable housing.
  
Few tools can effectively address Affordability for "missing middle" Workforce residents (30-50% AMI). While parking requirements, direct subsidies, tax abatements, and density bonuses are all valuable, they are only effective when integrated into a required comprehensive system like Inclusionary Zoning. We cannot afford to lose any of these tools if we are to succeed in the battle for Affordable Workforce Housing in Bellingham.


Inclusionary Zoning counters historic patterns of exclusion and segregation by ensuring that housing is available for lower-wage workers (who are predominantly people of color); guarding against concentrations of poverty and affluence; and making it possible for lower-income households to live in neighborhoods with access to quality jobs, well-resourced schools, transit options, services, and fresh food grocers.(15)

Thankfully, the removal of parking minimums is only temporary and can be reversed in 12 months. Sadly though, it will have deep and permanent repercussions even if it is repealed next year. The possibility of increased profits will cause land values to increase, which will cause all future tax-supported, affordable housing projects for the 0-30% AMI to cost more.  Those extra costs will long outlive the ordinance. Further, land values of properties that include a vested “limited parking” permit will go for a premium in the future.

Shifting the topic of conversation

Organizations like Sightline.org have quietly shifted the focus of the housing discussion toward increasing overall supply from Affordability. They emphasize "welcoming more homes, of all shapes and sizes." Their lobbyist work has duped Bellingham leadership into prioritizing market-rate housing development over programs specifically designed to address Affordability for lower-income residents.

In 2020, Scott Jones (author of this article), a Planning Commissioner for the City of Bellingham, asked the planning director at the time, Rick Sepler, about doing an Inclusionary Zoning study. Such a study would lay out the framework for a program that could help solve Affordability for the ‘missing middle’ residents, as mentioned above. On January 22nd, 2025, Mayor Lund confirmed that no such study is, or has been, planned.

In 2024, a narrow study, on Bellingham's Multi-Family Tax Exemption (MFTE) program was managed by the Whatcom Housing Alliance and completed by ECONorthwest. Only the 12-year option requires Affordable units, and it has never been used.  During a Planning Commission discussion (16) on long-term Inclusionary Zoning, former Whatcom Housing Alliance program director Rose Lathrop cited the narrow MFTE study, claiming it proved developers would not build with Affordability requirements. She effectively halted the discussion by referencing the study that was not yet public.

When the study (17) was finally made public, it became clear that Lathrop's statements had been misleading. While the study acknowledged difficulties in the building sector, it highlighted that even a minor 1% decrease in interest rates could significantly improve the financial feasibility of including Affordable units in new developments. This underscores the near-term importance of a comprehensive inclusionary approach. By creating Inclusionary Zoning with incentives like reduced parking requirements and density bonuses, we can unlock extensive Affordable housing opportunities.

It continues…

When Whatcom Housing Alliance and Sightline are unable to densify projects for market rate housing, they still attempt to stymie movement toward an Affordability solution. On February 13th, Bellingham and Whatcom County leadership have been invited to a Sightline Zoom talk, where the Whatcom Housing Alliance will “ensure we’re not suppressing the total number of affordable and market-rate homes” (note WHA’s definition of ‘affordable’ is market rate). This Zoom talk is just seven days before a Planning Commission meeting where the topic of Inclusionary Zoning will be discussed for the 2025 Comprehensive Plan.

Their ideas, if not their fingerprints, are also reflected in Inclusionary Zoning policies. The 2016 Comprehensive Plan states: 

Consider developing an inclusionary zoning program as a means of increasing the City's affordable housing supply. 

As of January 31st, 2025, the recommendations by staff to the Planning Commission note a change to the 2025 Comp Plan: 

Monitor the residential development economy for opportunities to develop a mandatory inclusionary affordability zoning program without significantly reducing overall housing production.

The use of words like "consider" and "monitor" raises concerns about the likelihood of concrete action.  Furthermore, the condition of not "significantly reducing overall housing production" will limit the effectiveness of any potential Inclusionary Zoning program. This reflects a concern that Affordability requirements could slow down development, although studies show that well planned Inclusionary Zoning programs do not hinder supply of market rate housing. 

Once realized, Inclusionary Zoning not only creates a supply of Affordable housing, but it decreases segregation, conserves public funds, and balances the real estate market, making it affordable for all.

To have the greatest impact on the crisis at hand, an Inclusionary Zoning program must be studied, planned for, and implemented as soon as possible. Then, the moment the market is ready, the city can finally begin to help tens of thousands of residents so greatly in need of housing.

Footnotes:

1) https://meetings.cob.org/Documents/DownloadFileBytes/Attachment%20-%20RESOLUTION%20-%20AB_%2023783.pdf
2) https://meetings.cob.org/Documents/DownloadFileBytes/Attachment%20-%20B-DRAFT%20ADU%20ORDINANCE.pdf?documentType=1&meetingId=1473&itemId=1444&publishId=4713&isSection=False&isAttachment=True
3) https://www.facebook.com/profile/100068879333437/search/?q=dadu
4) https://www.whatcomdemocrats.org/_files/ugd/fe4445_7406e1aef9c045c1a2e3cd098b1f4802.pdf
5) https://www.facebook.com/profile/100068879333437/search/?q=affordability
6) https://www.whatcomdemocrats.org/2019/01/22/resolution-on-improving-bellingham-housing-choice-availability-and-affordability-second-reading?fbclid=IwY2xjawIRqttleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHe8YWE6m8zhHpi-3lTe6NwplIGBjmMzEqmK50JqR0l4NpHK1wdTMLG6UqA_aem_bsYlQytxpoLgfjoDykpY0g
7) Developers, landlords, financial industry, well off renters and homeowners, etc.
8) https://helpinghousing.org/whatcom-housing-alliance-on-affordability-and-developments-in-old-town/
9) https://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/politics-government/article298591918.html
10) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264837718312870
11) https://www.whatcomdemocrats.org/_files/ugd/fe4445_7406e1aef9c045c1a2e3cd098b1f4802.pdf
12) https://whatcomhousingalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Parking-Report-Final-Draft-6.6.22.pdf
13) https://cob.org/wp-content/uploads/2023-2027-consolidated-plan-overview.pdf - Page 7 graph.
14) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDPPVZXZajE
15) https://www.policylink.org/resources-tools/tools/all-in-cities/housing-anti-displacement/inclusionary-zoning
16) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5wAp_5OxJg&t=22s
17) https://meetings.cob.org/Documents/DownloadFileBytes/Attachment%20-%20MFTE%20PROGRAM%20EVALUATION%20REPORT.pdf?documentType=1&meetingId=3398&itemId=36775&publishId=41598&isSection=False&isAttachment=True


 

Comments by Readers

Satpal Sidhu

Feb 10, 2025

Dear Scott,

While you make good points about housing inventory, but “inclusionery zoning” in not the silver bullet. Yes, it can help but it has its own drawbacks too. All investors seek to maximum ROI at any cost and our national priorities support this. Helping one income bracket will hurt another income bracket. Our economy offer opportunties only to the people with existing capital to multiply it.

The real underlying reason, we all unwittingly ignore, is that the “reality of income disparities” has caught up with us in real terms. It is not an academic theory any more. 

The large middle class has been a fallacy from 70s America. Now, we are fast becoming a rich country with poor people. Same as rest of the world. The pain of adjustment is unbearable at this time. 

Read More...

Scott Jones

Feb 11, 2025

Satpal, There is no silver bullet, or else Affordability would have been solved long ago. That term and others have been used to silence any action for too long.  That’s not going to work anymore. “Our economy offer opportunties only to the people with existing capital to multiply it.” This is why Inclusionary Zoning and similar tools are so powerful, because it takes away this dogma.

Studies also show that if implemented correctly, IZ does not slow market rate housing. Further, are you saying that those who are already hurting and dangerously close to being homeless don’t have the right to have a bit more? The well off already have enough housing. Look at the City’s graphs. The 30-50% AMI don’t have nearly enough, while the 80-120% ami demographic have plenty in comparison, but they are the ones we help with zoning. We must focus on 30-50%. I am taken aback you don’t agree.

Your final laments would make me think you’d be in full support, but sadly same old arguments…that will no longer work. Either you’ve given up, or you’re in support of the Developer over the suffering resident. Sad either way.

Read More...

Satpal Sidhu

Feb 11, 2025

Scott,

I have not given up. I support IZ wholeheartedly.

However, the underlying land cost, the utility infrastructure cost and the housimng materials and labor costs add up to make housing unaffordable for the 30-50% AMI.  I know people have the right to own homes, but people dont have money to afford homes. Even the funds for down payment is a big hurdle. This is the flaw in the economic structure. Wages and cost of living are not in sink. Taxing our way through this problem will never work. Our tax structure takes away from slightly well-off people to help to slightly poor people or absolutely poor peoeple. Not sustainable!

Also for rental housings, the developers / capital investors would like to maximise the ROI. There are so many competeing opprtunties to achieve that than to build low rental homes. 

You may remeber the “Projects” in large cities like Chicago were the goverment solution to provide housing to poor. It needed continuous funding for manitenace and upkeep. The whole experiment  failed miserably after 2 decades. I support more low income housing. But it has to be done with ownership model / or vested interest by the residents.

 

 

Read More...

Scott Jones

Feb 11, 2025

Satpal,
I appreciate your proof of the importance of Inclusionary Zoning, due the complexities of our economic system. Based on the truth of your comments, Inclusionary Zoning is the only solution for the 30-50% AMI demographic, our work force. Now we need the City and County Council’s, Planning Commissions, and Planning Departments to see the light through the fog of the Whatcom Housing Alliance and Sightline.

Read More...

Shannon Skinner

Feb 11, 2025

@satpal Your words: “All investors seek to maximum [sic] ROI at any cost and our national priorities support this. Helping one income bracket will hurt another income bracket. Our economy offer [sic] opportunties only to the people with existing capital to multiply it.”

With Democrats like you, who needs Republicans? Can you hear yourself? 

When our community *invests* in policies, such as inclusionary zoning, to increase the supply of housing priced within reach of those earning 50-120% of the Area Median Income (AMI), we expect the return on investment (ROI) to be fewer or close to zero unhoused Bellingham residents. Framing every investment ROI in terms of capital instead of public goods is how our country got into this mess. 

Adopting a “housing as a human right” policy is not a zero sum game, as you describe it: “Helping one income bracket will hurt another income bracket.” Ensuring that everyone’s needs can be met, whether that be through policies that subsidize ownership, provide transitional public housing, or forcing “people with existing capital” to accommodate and subsidize those without, benefits everyone in the community. A healthy, vibrant community takes care of its own and leaves no one behind. 

What we do not need is a county executive with a nihilistic vision who is willing to accept “the reality of income disparities” rather than fight like hell on behalf of the working class that keep this community running, but who have been treated as expendable by elected officials. 

Read More...

YIMBYs: It Was Never About Affordability

By Guest WriterOn Feb 10, 2025

Affordability has been a ruse for creating market rate housing.

5 comments, most recent 53 minutes ago

Ask City Council to Do Right by Us

By Jon HumphreyOn Feb 08, 2025

Represent Us and Our Interests. Please!

4 comments, most recent 15 hours ago

Bellingham City Council Resolution on the $5 Trillion National Infrastructure Bank

By Dick ConoboyOn Feb 05, 2025

Local action in support of a proposal to rebuild nationwide infrastructure

Truth, Justice and the American Way

By Tip JohnsonOn Jan 27, 2025

Who’s Superman when you need him? We are.

2 comments, most recent 2 weeks ago

Corporate Welfare at its Worst …and About to Get Worse

By Jon HumphreyOn Jan 04, 2025

From Musk’s big investment all the way to local campaigns, political “contributions” will be re-paid. Here’s how.

7 comments, most recent 1 month ago

State Budget Crisis? Stop Paying Private Banks!

By Guest WriterOn Dec 30, 2024

Private banks are fighting hard to keep us from starting our own state bank. There’s a reason.

Gabbard and Hegseth.  Why Are They Not Profoundly Ashamed?

By Dick ConoboyOn Dec 01, 2024

To be so manifestly unqualified and yet not be deeply aware of that speaks exactly to the very point of not being qualified.

6 comments, most recent 2 months ago

New Trump Administration Expected To Undo Biden’s Financial Regulation

By Guest WriterOn Nov 24, 2024

Chaos likely to ensue. Catastrophe cannot be ruled out.

15 comments, most recent 2 months ago

The Tyranny Of Leaf Blowers

By Guest WriterOn Nov 14, 2024

There is no escape from the deep-throated roar and the clouds of filth produced by these machines.

3 comments, most recent 2 months ago

The Election of Donald Trump

By John ServaisOn Nov 07, 2024

A perspective from a very old liberal political junkie.

19 comments, most recent 2 months ago

Veterans Day, 2024.  What Is To Be Done?

By Dick ConoboyOn Nov 04, 2024

Deeds, not talk, count on Veterans Day

2 comments, most recent 3 months ago

VA Health Care for Life?  You Now May Be Eligible.

By Dick ConoboyOn Nov 01, 2024

Phasing in of Veterans Administration (VA) health care under the Pact Act has been eliminated. All eligible veterans can enroll in VA health care…NOW!

How Do You Spell Budget And Disaster Relief?  N…I…B

By Dick ConoboyOn Oct 27, 2024

An off-budget $5 Trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB), along the lines of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) that operated between 1932-1957, means low-cost loans and no additions to the deficit.

Medicare Advantage Open Season And YOU Are The $$$ Target

By Dick ConoboyOn Oct 23, 2024

Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare. Medicare is there to provide health care. Medicare Advantage is a business, there to make money.

1 comment, most recent 3 months ago

An Overlooked Benefit of Improved Internet Access in Whatcom County: The U.S. Census

By David A. SwansonOn Oct 21, 2024

David Swanson verifies what Jon Humphrey has said for years: good internet access benefits people, cities, counties, and states.

10 comments, most recent 3 months ago

Minimum Wage - Farce or Tragedy?

By Dick ConoboyOn Oct 19, 2024

Or perhaps tragic farce or farcical tragedy might be more apt descriptors. Pick one, or both.

13 comments, most recent 3 months ago

The Big Ask

By NWCitizen ManagementOn Oct 16, 2024

After nearly 30 years online, and literally being one of the oldest blogs on the internet, Northwest Citizen needs a major programming overhaul. To do so, we need your help.

1 comment, most recent 3 months ago

The Disturbing Disappearance of Local Banks

By Guest WriterOn Sep 19, 2024

The top 20% of commercial banks in the United States control 95% of our total banking assets. Remember “Too-Big-to-Fail”?

3 comments, most recent 4 months ago

How To Get Nothing Done

By Jon HumphreyOn Aug 24, 2024

The City has created another useless document ensuring nothing changes and mediocre communication services are protected.

13 comments, most recent 4 months ago

You haven’t voted yet? Check out this idea for one of your votes.

By John ServaisOn Aug 05, 2024

Why a vote for Jason Call for Congress is a good vote for conservatives, liberals, Democrats and Republicans. Yes, an unusual idea.