Housing Town Hall

Coming up on Friday, March 9th from 5:00 to 7:00 pm at the Fairgrounds there will be a Housing Town Hall to explore the topic: Affordable housing in San Juan County

This event is being coordinated by the San Juan Island Women’s Group, and sponsored by many local businesses, all listed on the attached flyer. It has been very gratifying to us that the event is being welcomed with such support, and the feedback we have received so far from the community has been overwhelmingly positive. Folks are very eager to learn about this issue, and are grateful for the opportunity.

For our neighbors on Orcas who wish to attend, the San Juan Island hostel has promised to give a “deep discount” to residents who would miss the ferry and need to stay overnight on SJI (there is a ferry going to Lopez after the event).

As promised on the flyer, there will be door prizes and free food and refreshments. We will be giving out raffle tickets at the door and draw for the door prizes throughout the evening.

There will be a stage for easy visibility of the panel, and at least two wireless mics; both for taking questions from the community and for panel members to answer them.

Jim Hooper has agreed to be the emcee, and will keep the event moving smoothly and productively. There will be many members of the Women’s Group attending to help set up, facilitate questions, and clean up afterward.

To give the panel an idea of what kind of questions to prepare for, we solicited questions from the community. Below are some of the questions we’ve received.

• What can be done about the building restrictions that prevent business owners from developing housing for their employees?
• What is considered “affordable” for an average family in the San Juan Islands?
• What is the REET, and what is it for?
• Is there a plan in place or being developed to keep San Juan County affordable/accessible to support the working class in the immediate future? Over the next 10 years? Over the next 20 years?
• Does anyone foresee the growth rate of the pay scale in the islands following the growth rate of the cost of housing?
• How does the Comp plan address affordable housing?
• What incentives are there for owners to rent year-round as opposed to having a vacation rental?
• Should Additional Dwelling Unit permits be done away with?
• What is the long-term plan for having a sustainable drinking water supply?
• How can property owners find responsible tenants?  

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