By JEANETTE WOLFBERG
HUDSON–Demographic trends, whom to focus on housing for, and proposed state housing assistance programs highlighted the Columbia County Housing Task Force meeting January 9.
Task Force leader Chris Brown, who is Housing Coordinator for the Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC), summarized economic and demographic factors influencing the housing situation: Wages have stagnated, but the price of housing has exploded.
Meanwhile, added County Director of Social Services Robert Gibson, the costs of childcare, cars and other important things have also gone up.
“People are house poor at all levels,” said Dennis Wedlick, an architect with Barlis Wedlick, at the meeting. It is becoming a challenge for essential workers to live in Columbia County, regardless of their income. Some people have to move out of the county because of one high utility bill on top of their other expenses.
“Can you live in our county on $40,000 a year?” someone at the meeting asked.
“That depends on how many roommates you have,” said Mr. Brown.
Mr. Brown reported that between 2012 and 2022, the number of people working in Columbia County (regardless of where they live) has dropped about 7% to 20,000, and the percent of this workforce who are over 55 years old has increased from 25% to 30% and is continuing to increase. The average wage of jobs the county is losing is about $60,000 a year, and the average wage of jobs the county is gaining is about $40,000. In 2020-21, the people moving into the county to live there had more than double the income of the people moving out. Three quarters of the jobs in the county pay 80% or less of the Area Median Income (AMI).
The county has low unemployment, but that makes several positions hard to fill.
Mr. Wedlick suggested that the Housing Task Force develop a mission statement.
Dan Barufaldi of the Ghent Town Board suggested building as many houses as possible for whoever will need it.
Mr. Brown suggested focusing on Workforce Housing. “We’re not focused on people making below a certain income, and people making above a certain income don’t need us.”
Mr. Wedlick said it is fair to focus on people who want to stay in the county rather than those who plan to stay transiently. He recommended asking the County Board of Supervisors to define its essential workforce and then target housing to it.
To start, Mr. Wedlick suggested that individual supervisors specify the work and services they consider essential for the area they represent. After all, different areas may most need different services, because of their different population densities.
Examples of essential workers meeting participants mentioned include emergency service providers, postal workers, plumbers, road plowers, and educators. County residents have provided these services. But if their children want to do the same, said Mr. Wedlick, they cannot afford living here. People leave the county not because they do not like their job but because they cannot afford to stay.
Mr. Brown also announced that Governor Hochul is proposing for New York State the following housing-related programs:
*Disincentivizing institutional investors from buying single- and two-family houses en masse. Mr. Brown reported a governor’s press release saying: “According to some estimates, private equity firms are expected to own up to 40% of the single-family rental market [nationwide] by 2030.” Some investors would buy houses short term, intending to flip them at a profit. Typically, each new owner increases the rent
*Funding to encourage building lodging intended as starter homes. Innovations to keep them as cheap as possible, like factory pre-fabrication and “modular development,” are welcome
*Down payment assistance for first time home buyers
*Property tax incentives for homes built with certain types of assistance and sold to people with low and moderate incomes
*Strengthening laws and policies to combat home appraisal discrimination.
Later, in a conversation January 16, Mr. Wedlick reiterated, “In my opinion, we need not worry about how many people we can bring into the county; we first need to help those who want to stay.” In fact, doing so is more cost effective.
Those whose salaries are not as high as they would like should be compensated with a community, an environment, and housing they like, he added.
Columbia County is becoming “more and more like a resort community,” Mr. Wedlick continued. As people go to Vermont to ski and likewise, people come to Columbia County to appreciate nature, to hike, to spend weekends, to board horses, to start farms, to grow “specialty crops” and raise specialty livestock, and to retire.
This drives up prices. But it also needs emergency service providers and other essential workers to function. And, Mr. Wedlick said, traveling 45 minutes to work is not the best thing for the environment or the quality of life.
In addition, Columbia County is 97% rural, Mr. Wedlick observed. But its farms are “scattered.” The majority of people who work on farms live here year round and have other jobs as well. But even if their farm work is only part time, they have to live “close” to the farm. The animals and plants need care.