East Bay Times: Solving the housing crisis takes bold action

“Bay Area counties have long been among the most expensive housing markets in the nation. A new report now confirms that our housing affordability is, quite literally, the worst.

Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda and Contra Costa counties are the top six most expensive jurisdictions on the national list released this month by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

Our region has under-produced housing for our current communities’ needs for decades and forecasts show that the Bay Area workforce and neighborhoods will grow an additional 2.3 million residents by 2040. Without smart planning, our region faces nothing short of a disaster.

Fortunately, we have an opportunity to craft a new approach in our region’s strategy ensuring that our Bay Area grows in a way that supports both our neighbors of today and our children of tomorrow.

The Bay Area’s regional transportation and land use agencies, MTC and ABAG, are working to finalize Plan Bay Area 2040, a compass to the Bay Area’s growth and evolution over the next 24 years. Further, the two agencies will unite under the MTC roof this summer, opening the opportunity for a new, holistic regional approach to our transportation and housing challenges.

What does that mean? Frankly, we’re looking at a moment in time when we have both urgency and opportunity to support bold action from our regional governments to prioritize affordable housing in their budgets, planning and policies.“

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