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SUNDAY,JANUARY 20.2002 METRO/STATE HOUSING from B1 What's affordable? Study found many cities The Metropolitan Council the regional planning ageono cy-uses the federal definition that a house or apartment is affordable if it consumes no more than 30 percent of a haven t met their pledges household's income.;The council also has defined what in- come levels it means when it talks about housing counted Their proposed legal targets designated by cities for high- as affordable under.the Livable Communities Act. would be the Met Council and density housing — which is 14' Rental housing has to cost$7l.5 per.month or less, the city of Eagan,which has de- mostly likely to be affordable an amount considered attainable for people earning 50 per_ d ined to participate in the —actually got affordable units. cent or toss of the region's median income.That's$37,500 council's affordable-housing The report's authors blame for a'family of four,or$26,150 for aperson living alone:. program. that on lack of follow-through - Ownership housing has to sell:for no more than The legal effort involves by the Met Council and by cit- $134,250,an amount considered attainable for people some of the same people who ies. earning 80 percent or less of the median income,That's helped launch the successful Said Goetz: Some of our $52,500 forafamily of four or$36,750 for a person living 1992 discrimination suit that city officials were very sur alone, led to the razing and redevel- prised about what their plans illopment of public-housing pro- said they were going to do." jects on Minneapolis' North Housing advocates have organizer and Met Council "how." Side. Like that suit, which met with Met Council repre- member from south Minne- Indeed,an affordable-hous- brought$118 million in federal sentatives a half-dozen times apolis. But he said of the Liv- ing task force dominated by aid and opened some suburbs to push the case for more vig- able Communities Act: "I just suburban mayors in 2000 pro- to public housing, the impact orous action. Russ Adams, di- don't think it's enough." posed aligning council spend- of a new suit could ripple rector of the Alliance for Met- ing with how suburbs perform across the entire metro area. ropolitan Stability—the point Falling short in meeting housing goals. What the study found organization for advocates — Some 103 cities have signed Mondale also notes that last said he thinks that the council up for the housing goals. But year some legislators tried to Until about 1983, the Met is taking the issue much more housing advocates suggest that strip the council of an y land- Council routinely reviewed a seriously than in the past. the goals are too timid,merely use planning authority and city's housing performance Mondale has championed reflecting existing conditions. tried to deny its ability to tie when it applied for federal aid. the Met Council's use of the Even the council's own esti- transportation funding to oth- But then the federal govern- Livable Communities Act, mates show that both goals erfactors. ment slashed housing subsi- which he sponsored in 1995 as and estimated production un- He said he hasn't yet seen a dies and other aid,and political a state senator.The law allows der the Livable Communities copy of the university report, winds changed in the state and communities to set goals for af- Act fall well short of existing which is nearing publication region. Resistance in suburbs fordable and life-cycle housing need, much less the added after more than a year of re- to low- and moderate-income in order to qualify for$81 mil- need expected by Metro'Plus search. housing also stiffened as racial lion in grants given so far for the council raised its He said he wishes housing minorities began to make up an mixed-income,high-density or growth estimates last week, advocates showed up at the increasing proportion of the affordable housing. meaning the affordable-hous- Capitol to help fend off such at- urban poor in the 1980s, ac- In addition, the council re- ing gap also should increase. tacks. "We're over there fight- cording to Ed Goetz,one of the cently has tied $75 million in "The crisis is so bad that ing for truth and justice and university researchers. federal transportation funding we're going to have to move to we're alone,"he said, although The researchers recently to how cities and counties per- something stronger," Adams Adams cited instances to the studied a sample of 25 cities form on affordable-housing is- said. contrary. that long ago pledged in their sues. And though it hasn't But Mondale sees things Mondale said he thinks the growth plans to accommodate worked out the details, it has differently. He said the Livable potential lawsuit is "a stretch illaffordable housing. They used adopted a policy that other re- Communities Act wasn't de- legally." But if it prevailed and surveys of developed parcels, gional investments, such as signed to solve a housing crisis brought fresh federal money as interviews with metro and city park spending, need to be but rather to get metro cities the public-housing suit did,he officials and developers, and made in accordance with a working toward a common said, he wishes advocates suc- reviews of comprehensive city's housing performance. goal "so there are very few Ea- cess. plans. "That's a sea change from gans." Moreover, he asserts, it The report is still being re- the previous Metropolitan has helped change the debate —SteveBrandt is at vised,but the study found that Council," said Frank Horn- on affordable housing in most sbrandt @startribune.com only six of every 100 acres long stein, an affordable-housing, suburbs from "whether" to or 612-673-4438.