According to AZ Central the city of Phoenix is exploring a policy that would trade a tax break to developers in exchange for offering 10% of the new apartments they build to be offered at lower than market rates. The average rental rate in the city is $1608 while the reduced rates would be between $600-$1,100 per month, depending on the size of the unit.
The City Council uses a rubric to determine whether to approve an incentive in the downtown core. A project will score additional points on the rubric if a portion of the units is offered at a discounted rate, making it more likely for the council to approve the incentive. Sheila Harris, founder and former director of the Arizona Housing Department, said the new push to encourage workforce housing could be the start of something promising."It's obviously a step in the right direction. The devil, though, is in the details," Harris said.
Harris said that while there is a housing need for people in the workforce housing income range, there is also a severe housing need for individuals who would still be unable to afford the discounted rates. She suggested the city's housing department provide housing vouchers for some of the new downtown apartments so there's permanent affordability downtown.
She said there are thousands of jobs in the downtown area, but many people can't afford to live near their job. "Our entire community would benefit because we're being proactive in trying to make sure we have housing in the downtown area," Harris said.
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