Good for Woodbury

Pioneer Press Sat, 16 Feb 2008 18:37:50 -0700
Woodbury finds secret to success of affordable housing

When Woodbury opened a 41-unit affordable-housing complex Friday, something was missing. It was the protests. Affordable housing in the much-less-affordable suburbs is usually as unwelcome as a stain on a tuxedo. But there wasn't a peep of protest at the city's latest affordable-housing project, Sienna Ridge on Brookview Road. With more than 1,900 affordable homes and rental units - and the most Habitat for Humanity homes of any Twin Cities suburb - Woodbury is far ahead of its affordable-housing goals. Woodbury's secret of success could be called "stealth affordability" - scattering the units widely and making sure they blend into neighborhoods. In this way, the city wards off the most frequent complaint of neighbors - that the units will hurt their property values. "We do not want them to be distinguished as 'affordable' when you drive down the street," said Janelle Schmitz, the city's planning and economic development manager. In most communities, an affordable-housing project triggers the NIMBY response - not in my back yard. Neighbors worry about low-income families bringing crime into their neighborhoods and lowering property values. Schmitz said affordable housing is often confused with federally financed Section 8 housing, for those living in poverty. That program gives subsidies directly to recipients, who move where they wish and apply the subsidy to their rents.

[[keywords: Housing;Metro;]]