Page 11 - Sonoma County Gazette April 2017

NEiGHBOR cont’d from page 10
more opportunities for everyone to be housed in safe affordable housing, but building alone will not end homelessness for the chronically homeless and not building affordable homes can only destroy us economically.
A Community’s Challenge
The conflict today with building housing in Sonoma County comes down
to some who believe that any new development risks destroying the beauty
that brings people here from across the planet to support our tourist economy versus the need for more housing to sustain the people who work in this industry. And the question then becomes, if we decide to build housing,
can it be well-designed for all income levels, and add to the quality of our community? Most of all, how do we house our mentally challenged individuals, disabled people, young people and old people in ways that work for them and society as well?
I will be speaking to these issues of affordable housing for all, and smart healthy community development, in more depth in future articles, and about the types of housing and social support system we need to maintain the quality and vibrancy of our beautiful County.
1 www.sonomacounty.ca.gov/Board-of-Supervisors/Press-Releases/2016/Sonoma-County-Takes- Action-to-Ease-the-Housing-Crisis/
2 www.sonoma-county.org/cdc/pdf/housing_toolbox_20150901.pdf.
3 www.nytimes.com/2016/05/31/us/americas-aging-homeless-old-and-on-the-street.html
4 www.socialsolutions.com/blog/2016-homelessness-statistics/
5 www.la.curbed.com/2016/3/4/11159938/california-housing-shortage-homeownership
6 www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-07-17/housings-30-percent-of-income-rule-is-near-
useless.
Angela Conte is a Sustainable Community Designer and Affordable Housing Advocate born and raised in Sonoma County. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University and is currently on the Sonoma County Community Development Commission’s Toolbox Implementation Committee to End Homelessness and a Volunteer with the Sonoma County Continuum of Care. Website www.angelaconte.com
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