Affordable Housing Takes Center Stage at City Council Candidate Forum

Affordable housing – or lack thereof – and what to do about it was a recurring theme at a City Council candidate forum Tuesday night.

Seven people vying for the votes of Santa Feans on Nov. 4 in two competitive races shared their sometimes divergent visions for addressing what many agree is a crisis-level problem of increasing housing costs in the city.

Well over 100 people packed into the Unitarian universalist Church for the forum, which was organized by the League of Women Voters of Santa Fe County. The three candidates running for an open seat in District 1 and four candidates running for a seat in District 2 attended the event, answering questions on housing policy, public safety and their credentials.

Each presented details on what they think would work to lower housing costs and increase the amount of affordable housing in the city.

Fee-in-lieu and the ‘Texas tax’

District 1 candidate David Montoya elicited cheers from the crowd when he mentioned his idea for a “Texas tax,” an additional fee or tax on second homes in the city. He said the money should go into the city’s affordable housing fund.

Montoya also supports stricter enforcement of short-term rental regulations and “fast-tracking” permitting for “affordable” or workforce housing.

[image of City Council District 2 candidates Leroy Trujillo, Aurora Martinez, Elizabeth Barrett and Paul Bustamante at the forum]

From left, City Council District 2 candidates Leroy Trujillo, Aurora Martinez, Elizabeth Barrett and Paul Bustamante participate in a forum Tuesday night hosted by the League of Women Voters of Santa Fe County at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Santa Fe.

Several other candidates voiced support for similar measures. District 2 candidate Liz Barrett said she would support tripling the affordable housing trust fund, increasing infill advancement and “cutting red tape” in the permitting process.

Barrett, a social worker, said her campaign is focused on “affordability, livability and sustainability.”

District 1 candidate Katherine Rivera pointed to a lack of affordable units being built by out-of-state developers in housing projects underway in the city.

“Santa Fe needs to work with developers and give us a higher percentage of affordable units – Santa Fe needs to incentivize them to come and build what we need,” she said.

District 2 candidate Paul Bustamante said a priority for him would be addressing the city’s “fee-in-lieu” system, which he called “a failure.” Most developers pay the fee in order to forgo setting aside a percentage of units in a project to be sold or rented at prices considered to be “affordable.”