A National Approach
“The mayor has a very complete vision,” says Peggy Lucas, partner at Brighton Development Corp., a local developer who has worked with the mayor on several projects. “She understands the city has to be a diverse place in terms of affordable housing.
“She’s an effective leader and good at building consensus, which is the name of the game,” she continues. “During the last year, we have seen a lot of redevelopment of the urban core. And that has really stabilized the tax base. The city is not as threatened as it was when she took over in 1994. We are at a much better spot financially, but there are still plenty of things to work on.”
And the mayor recognizes that. That’s why she has been so active in creating affordable housing opportunities on the local, regional and national level.
On the regional front, she chaired the Mayor’s Task Force for the Metropolitan Council, and on the national front, she is involved with the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
The task force is advocating that 1 percent of the state budget be dedicated to affordable housing, as well as pushing for making modifications in zoning practices. (See “Housing Strategy” on page 47 for more information.)
“The mayor has become one of our strongest voices within the conference on the affordable housing issues,” explains Dave Gatton, senior staff person for the U.S. Conference of Mayors. “That is why she has represented us in such forums as the [Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA)] meeting.”
Because affordable housing is a national crisis, Mayor Sayles Belton believes it’s important for cities to solicit the support of organizations like the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities.
“We’ve reached out to organizations like Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the MBA. In fact, the MBA partnered with the mayor’s conference on something that we’re calling ‘Investments in New American Cities,'” says Sayles Belton.
The two organizations jointly announced a survey report which stated that the American people want to see the government respond to the issues and problems of affordable housing.
“The study helped people understand that we’ve got some members of our community who have good jobs – teachers, bus drivers, secretaries – who are contributing greatly to the community and they can’t afford housing at the prices that we’re seeing today,” she says.
According to the report, the goal of the two organizations is to create jobs, strengthen economics, build healthy communities and extend access to housing in urban areas.
“We want people to know and understand that good, solid, decent housing can be the catalyst that a family needs to propel itself into self-sufficiency,” says the mayor. “I’ve watched it happen over and over again.”