One of the big complaints that often gets in the way of approved building for public housing is how it is going to affect home values in the surrounding community. This is a legitimate concern. But what if the public housing did not resemble public housing at all? What if it blended in with the community? One California community may have found an answer that will open doors to increased building of low-income housing.
What we can learn from Hickman
Hickman, California, is a tiny city of just 641 residents as of 2010, located east of Modesto in Stanislaus County, California. Developer Wendell Naraghi is looking for approval from the city to build more of his popular single-story duplexes. Why are they so popular? Because they are not huge apartment complexes that look anything like low-income housing. They blend in with the neighborhood.
Naraghi has two goals. One is to build more affordable housing for low-income residents. The second goal is to dispel myths about affordable housing. Myths is what he refers to as the two most common complaints from home owners in residential neighborhoods, that their property values will decrease and crime will increase as a result of low-income housing projects. According to Naraghi, nothing could be further from the truth.
The facts according to Naraghi
Naraghi's Project manager Wayne Bruns has explained that property values will not decrease with their project because their duplexes "would look like houses and won’t hurt the property values of homeowners." In fact, he think homeowners' property values will increase. In addition, he stated “The modern-day low-income projects are nothing like what we used to think.” If approved, the project will provide housing for up to 200 more residents in Hickman.
Perhaps this little town of Hickman, California, has found a winning way to make everyone happy, but more importantly, help increase low-income housing across the country.
For more information, visit www.modbee.com/news/local/article4083699.html
