Summary

Declares May 14-20 Affordable Housing Week in King County

Story

 The Metropolitan King County Council and Executive Dow Constantine today recognized the importance of and need for affordable housing by declaring May 14-20 as Affordable Housing Week in King County.

“To keep a job, be successful in school, or maintain mental and physical health we all need a safe, healthy place to call home,” said Council Vice Chair Claudia Balducci. “Too many of our neighbors throughout the County are struggling with housing instability, one financial crisis away from losing their homes. King County and our cities recognize that this is a regional problem and are joining together to act in concert to make a difference for all of our residents.”

As King County’s economy has boomed in recent years, prosperity has come with rising housing costs and a lack of housing supply to keep up with demand. Over the past five years, the average rent in King County has increased 43 percent and the median home sale price has increased 53%, while median household income has only increased 30percent. The disparity between the rise in housing costs and the rise in income has resulted in housing instability for families across King County.

Today’s proclamation recognizes that all people should have access to safe, healthy, and affordable homes, as well as the need for a coordinated, regional approach to housing.

WHEREAS, all people should have access to safe, healthy, and affordable homes in safe, healthy, and vibrant communities; and

WHEREAS, the Regional Affordable Housing Task Force has identified the need to build, preserve, or subsidize 244,000 net new homes in King County by 2040 for households earning less than 80 percent of the Area Median Income; and

WHEREAS, while the average rent in King County has increased 43 percent and the median home sale price has increased 53 percent in the last five years, median household income has increased only 30 percent; and

WHEREAS, in 2017, one third of households in King County were cost burdened, meaning that they paid more than 30 percent of their income for housing; and

WHEREAS, the 2017 Point In Time Count found 5,485 people in our community sleeping outdoors without shelter; and

WHEREAS, the All Home committee identifies affordable housing as a critical component of making homelessness rare, brief, and one-time; and

WHEREAS, the search for affordable homes has pushed people farther and farther from job centers and displaced many communities, especially communities of color; and the $54 billion voter-approved investment in a regional light rail and bus system is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in transit-oriented development that is affordable to all residents; and

WHEREAS, affordable housing is a regional problem that requires a coordinated solution, and the King County Executive and King County Council join with communities throughout the county to endorse the aims, objectives, and purposes of Affordable Housing Week, and recommit to the goal of safe, healthy, and affordable homes for all county residents;

NOW, THEREFORE, we, the King County Executive and the Metropolitan King County Council, proclaim the week of May 14-20, 2018, as

 in King County and encourage all county residents to embrace affordable housing opportunities in their communities.

DATED this fourteenth day of May, 2018.