Let’s meet our housing goals

While finances are strained for all of us, interest rates are at historic lows which makes this a great time for a housing bond measure or other financing. We’re on the brink of one of the worst eviction and homelessness crises that the country has ever seen, and Bay Area renters and homeowners are especially vulnerable given the astronomical cost of living here. We must continue or expand housing development to prevent a further explosion in Bay Area homelessness.

I have not seen an epidemiologist suggest reducing housing development during a pandemic. Instead, they advocate for masks, physical distancing, contact tracing and treatment/vaccine development. Other nations and regions with far higher density than the Bay Area have suppressed the pandemic.

We are seeing huge disparities in how this pandemic is impacting Americans by race and socioeconomic status, including here in San Mateo County where almost 50% of the COVID cases are among our Latinx community. As a nation, we are also seeing historic disparities in health and wealth by race. We cannot allow this pandemic to be an excuse to ignore the Bay Area’s longtime housing crisis. We must respond to these crises with leadership and by meeting or exceeding housing goals, not retreat.

Stephen Floor

San Mateo