Metro Nashville Mayor David Briley announced a $750 million affordable housing program on Tuesday.
The “Under One Roof 2029” program will create 10,000 new units of affordable housing in 10 years, Briley said, according to a story by WKRN.
The city plans to contribute $500 million of the total $750 million. Briley asked for the private sector to chip in $250 million with such tools as a real estate investment trust, WKRN said.
NewsChannel 5 quoted the mayor as saying, “Nashville is thriving in many ways, and that is a good thing as growth creates better-paying jobs and generates revenue for schools, roads, parks and libraries,” Mayor Briley said. “Yet the true measure of a great city is how it treats all of its citizens – making sure growth is balanced by continuing to invest in people. The Under One Roof 2029 initiative will help ensure we all move forward together.”
Under the plan, Nashville will give Metro Development and Housing Agency $350 million for overhauling and adding units, the Nashville Post said. Nashville will give $150 million to the Barnes Fund to create a minimum of 5,000 units.
Fox News 17 provided a Facebook video of the announcement, which is available here.
John Ray Clemmons, who is running for mayor, gave a statement to Briley’s plan in a series of tweets.
https://twitter.com/Clemmons4Mayor/status/1110612100039299072
“We appreciate the mayor’s newfound focus on affordable housing. As our city has prospered, too many Nashville families have been left behind and displaced from their neighborhoods. “In six years, Nashville is estimated to have a 31,000 unit shortage for middle-class and low-income families. This constitutes a crisis and requires bold leadership and innovative, substantive action. Unfortunately, the Mayor’s plan falls short in both respects. “According to today’s announcement, the mayor intends to provide MDHA with $350 million via bonds to redevelop existing public housing, with only one-fifth of the refurbished units being dedicated to individuals at the lowest end of the income spectrum. This is a significant investment that does nothing to address the 31,000 unit shortage facing our city. “Additionally, the mayor is only committing $15 million per year to the Barnes Fund for Affordable Housing, a key source of funding for non-profits and others who are working to build new affordable and workforce housing units for our teachers, nurses, first responders, and other working families. While an increase, this investment by the city is woefully insufficient in light of the crisis facing Nashville. “While the private sector should be investing in affordable housing, Nashville families cannot afford to wait any longer for real leadership in the mayor’s office and innovative, substantive action on this issue.”
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Jason M. Reynolds has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist at outlets of all sizes.
Photo “David Briley” by David Briley. Background Photo “Nashville City Hall” by euthman. CC BY-SA 2.0.
Would make more sense to simply subsidized low income purchase of homes and instill ownership and responsibility instead of creating what will undoubtedly become next generation ghettos. By simply giving $50K to low income folks with decent credit and a job working hard to move up on the ladder it would mean 15,000 families taking responsibility for themselves instead of relying on the Government. Ownership and responsibility and a one time hand-up instead of building warehousing for humans that inevitably devolve into ghettos. Public housing projects Cabrini Green and Robert Taylor Homes in Chicago were not built as rat and drug infested communities, but rather new, clean low income housing. Fast forward just 20 years and they were uninhabitable. Briley’s proposal would do nothing more than take $750,000,000 for taxpayer money and build 21st century public ghettos
And so it starts……Nashville’s slide into the fiscal abyss, I’ve seen this movie before, affordable housing is an endless money pit, the hardworking tax payers through out the state will be paying for this monster for the rest of their lives. The left is solidifying their base voters or should I say buying their votes far into the future. $750,000,000.00 is just the starting point, it will be much much higher and they haven’t even addressed the fact the maintenance and up keep is going to require a lot of money. Who is going to pay for the abuse of these properties because as sure as the day is long these new homes will not stay new very long, the surrounding property values will eventually take a hit once these places begin there inevitable decline. I’m sure Nashville will have to higher more police which may be a feat in itself since they already have a shortage (costing the tax payers more money), oh and don’t forget the schools, I can hear the great sucking sound coming from Nashville (your tax dollars into the liberal coffers). Typical liberal thinking, we are broke, so let’s spend a billion dollars we don’t have and give affordable housing (aka Govt. Housing) to people who will always rely on the Govt. to take care of them. I’ve seen this in Chicago and many of the suburbs around Chicago and almost everyone of them is bankrupt and Nashville is well on its way to do the same. Insanity has creeped into Nashville run for your lives!!!
Amen.
No to Briley and No to his policies. Megan Briley does not represent the average citizens of Nashville. This policy is rediculous and bad. Move on Briley, you have already done more harm than can be paid for.
Metro has no money that is not provided by the private sector. All the $500 is taxpayer funded in some way or the other. Whether or not you agree with the program it should be understood and stated by the mayor that it will require additionsl taxes from the people.