Philadelphia (KYW Newsradio) — In a 90-minute address to a special session of Philadelphia City Council Monday, Mayor Cherelle Parker unveiled details of her $2 billion proposal to create 30,000 units of housing targeted mostly toward people making less than 50% of the Area Median Income.
“Aside from public safety, I truly believe at this time, there is no single more important issue facing our great City of Philadelphia than the issue of access to housing,” she said. “This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for Philadelphia and there is no time to waste.”
City council members gave the plan generally positive reviews but said they still had questions, especially about how it would impact the ability of district council members to control development in their district.
“Her heart is in the right place,” said Council President Kenyatta Johnson after the address, “but we’ll review this proposal as a unit and we’ll determine how we’re going to move forward.”
Parker said her plan, which she has dubbed H.O.M.E. (Housing Opportunities Made Easy), would produce 13,500 new housing units and 16,500 preserved or restored.
While the plan includes rental properties, the mayor said she hoped it would increase the rate of home ownership, which has fallen to about 52% of residents.
Funding for H.O.M.E. would come from an $800 million bond issue (including $400 million in FY26), $200 million in other funds and $1 billion in city property for housing.
The use of city property is where the plan collides with the long-standing, near sacrosanct city council tradition known as councilmanic prerogative, which gives district council members unfettered authority over zoning and land use decisions in their districts. Currently, any transfer of city land requires legislation from the district council person, a process that can add weeks or months to land transfers or stop them altogether.
Parker, a former district council person, said she understands the importance of the tradition, calling it “the elephant in the room,” but urged council to consider a new framework that would speed up the process.
She suggested that, for homes being built with bond proceeds, the Land Bank would work with city council to “preauthorize the sale, donation or transfer of all municipally-owned real estate for the purpose of constructing new housing under this new program.”
She also proposed that city council help create a list of preapproved developers to speed up the bidding process and let the Department of Planning and Development create a design standard that could be used for each project.
Such a plan would require a level of cooperation between the mayor and city council that would be unprecedented.
“I know we have to sit down, we have to talk,” she said. “But I beg of you, City Council of Philadelphia, let’s prove people wrong who say we can’t work together to make this process work. I’m asking you, let’s take a shot at it. If we get together we can do it.”
Other aspects of the mayor’s plan include continuing and, in some cases, expanding existing programs. Among the programs she proposes expanding:
— Basics Systems Repair provides free roofing or other major system repairs so that homeowners don’t lose their homes because of expensive maintenance needs. More funding would expand the pool of homeowners eligible to receive the aid.
— The Shallow Rent Program helps cost-burdened tenants close the gap between what they can afford and their rent. The new version will help middle-income essential workers, such as teachers and nurses, meet market-rate rent in vacant units because their neighborhoods were overbuilt.
— The Rental Improvement Fund helps landlords fix up rentals if they promise to keep rents affordable.
— The Tangled Title Fund provides free legal assistance to help homeowners, often heirs to the original owner, resolve problems proving ownership.
— Affordable Housing Preservation and Production Funds provide gap financing for low-income housing development projects.
Parker also proposed several new programs:
— One Philly Mortgage would provide 30-year fixed-rate loans with a 3% down payment and competitive interest rates and remove the need for private mortgage insurance.
— A buy-out of U.S. Bank Liens, which have been plaguing the city since a 1997 effort to raise money by selling tax liens to a private lienholder (U.S. Bank) who has tied up property transfers for community gardens and other uses.
— Apprenticeship training for construction workers on the new housing projects.
— A home service Clearinghouse and Concierge to pre-qualify home repair contractors to prevent scammers.
— Curbside Appeal and Façade Improvement Funds for repairs to home exteriors.
— A Land Bank Acquisition Fund to help the Land Bank acquire repossessed property at public auctions and increase the supply of affordable units.
Council members found a lot to like in the plan.
“I love that the mayor is focusing more on keeping people in their homes,” said Jaime Gauthier, chair of the council’s Housing Committee. “We cannot lose the affordable housing that we have. And we do have to produce more housing as well. I think it’s the right mix.”
But Gauthier also was cautious about the mayor’s proposals concerning Land Bank property.
“This is public land, these are public resources and the community should be at the table on what land is disposed for and what’s built in their community,” she said. “Getting to 30,000 homes will depend on the details.”
Councilman Mark Squilla was also looking for more details.
“I think it’s worth having a conversation,” he said. “We know there’s a need for affordable housing but it is really difficult to move properties through the Land Bank so I’m not sure how this makes it any faster. Our process doesn’t really slow it up.”
PHA President Kelvin Jeremiah was enthusiastic, especially given the uncertainty about federal funding, which supplies 93% of his budget.
“When the federal government fails us, the city and state step up and you see that happening with this plan,” he said.
The urbanist group 5th Square was also supportive.
“We are happy to see the mayor mention reforms to land use and zoning in order to streamline the process of building housing,” said a statement from co-chair Brendan Maragh.