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City Council is poised to pass the first annual budget for the mayor’s $2 billion housing plan, following hours of public testimony and nearly two weeks of closed-door negotiations with Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration.
Lawmakers on Tuesday advanced legislation that will guide spending during the first year of the Housing Opportunities Made Easy, or H.O.M.E., initiative, a multifaceted initiative rooted in creating and preserving 30,000 housing units.
An amended resolution, which includes an additional $82.6 million in spending, is set to come up for a second and final vote on Dec. 11, Council’s final regular meeting of the year. If passed, the city can borrow the first chunk of funding for the plan, which is backed by $800 million in bonds.
Parker does not need to sign the resolution for it to take effect.
“I’m glad that we came back together today to continue our review of this important legislation. And I’m also glad that today we kept our focus on the true face of Philadelphia’s housing crisis. Because for the H.O.M.E. plan to work, it must start by helping those who are most burdened in today’s housing market, including many of our public servants,” said Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, who chairs the body’s housing committee.
What’s in the budget resolution?
The first-year budget now calls for about $277 million in spending for 27 programs, many of which already exist. The measure moves forward amid an affordable housing crisis and as Philadelphia navigates the fallout from funding cuts enacted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The amended measure includes $43.5 million for the Turn the Key program, which uses public lots to build new houses for first-time homebuyers who otherwise would be unable to make the transition. The original proposal did not include new funding for the popular program.
The updated resolution also calls for an additional $21 million for affordable housing preservation and production, as well as an additional $5 million for the Basic Systems Repair Program, which provides free home repairs for low-income homeowners.
Under the legislation, 90% of the program’s funding would go to households earning up to 60% of area median income, or about $71,640 a year for a family of four. That data point includes places outside of Philadelphia.
The same will be true for the Adaptive Modifications Program.
The legislation also quadruples funding for FreshStartPHL, which will help tenants facing eviction or homelessness by providing funding for rental payments or a security deposit at a new place.
The program is now expected to have $4 million in funding, and include an antidisplacement fund for renters forced to move after the city has issued a cease operations order to their landlords because their building is unsafe. Lawmakers passed legislation authorizing the city to create such a program but it was unclear how the effort would be funded.
Tuesday’s vote represents a significant victory for Council’s progressive bloc, which pushed hard for more funding for programs that support low-income renters and homeowners.
During testimony last month, a number of council members urged officials with the Parker administration to prioritize Philadelphia’s lowest-income residents — cost-burdened renters and homeowners who spend more than 30% of their income on housing.
Most — if not all — of their requests are now reflected in the amended resolution after initial pushback from the Parker administration.
Their sentiments were echoed by several speakers during public comment Tuesday, which saw renters, real estate developers, researchers and housing attorneys share their support and criticisms of the H.O.M.E. plan.
Testimony from proponents and opponents
Rochelle Lashley, a member of the social justice group One Pennsylvania, urged lawmakers to include more funding for low-income renters and homeowners “who need it most.”
“It’s a simple principle. We should start at the bottom before we go to the top. The struggle is real,” said Lashley, who has lived in Southwest Philadelphia for more than 50 years.
“It’s not only morally right, it’s structurally sound policy,” added Melissa Monts, another member of the group.
Other speakers applauded the Parker administration for crafting a housing plan for all Philadelphians — not just those living at the bottom of the city’s socioeconomic ladder.
Since the start, the mayor has been adamant about the H.O.M.E. initiative serving everyone who needs help with housing — from low-income renters to moderate-income homeowners. And she vowed to never engage in policymaking that pits “have-nots against those who have just a little.”
Ryan Boyer, business manager for the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council, said Tuesday that the city cannot afford to potentially alienate working-class and middle-income residents by implementing a housing plan that doesn’t also seek to help that population.
“This is a very, very important and serious issue,” said Boyer, one of Parker’s strongest political allies.
“If we don’t keep some of the middle class and working-class people in the city of Philadelphia, that creates craters in our tax base. So we have to, very carefully and delicately, make incentives for those people to stay that can leave, as well as take care of our most vulnerable.”
For now, it’s unclear when the city will borrow the first chunk of funding for the initiative — or how much will be borrowed. But it is unlikely it will happen before the holidays.
Finance Director Rob Dubow has said the plan would start with $400 million in funding, but budgeting for the initiative is now based on the calendar year instead of the fiscal year. That could potentially change the math.
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