Body of News Release
UPDATE, 8/14/24: The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) has removed a $20 billion bond measure for affordable housing from the November general election ballot. The County has canceled the planned listening sessions referenced below given BAHFA’s decision. The County remains committed to engaging with the community on housing issues and will provide updates on future opportunities for public involvement.
ORIGINAL ANNOUNCEMENT:
San Rafael, CA – In August, Marin County residents will have plenty of choices to provide input at listening sessions and take a survey about how Marin would spend its portion of the regional affordable housing bond measure on the November ballots for nine Bay Area counties.
If supported by a majority of the region’s voters, the bond measure would raise $20 billion to create homes affordable to lower-and moderate-income households. Of the funds collected for this bond, 80% will return to the county of origin. In Marin County, $699 million would be available to fund housing throughout towns, cities, and the unincorporated areas of the county.
The Local Expenditure Plan Steering Committee has scheduled general listening sessions and two for each region in the county to give people a chance to learn about the bond and provide feedback on housing needs in Marin communities and priorities for funding. The committee is made up of representatives of Marin cities, towns, and the County of Marin, and it is staffed by the Marin County Community Development Agency (CDA). Translation is being provided, and all details on session registration and participation are on MarinHousingBond.org.
Online general sessions:
- Thursday, August 8
- Wednesday, August 14
Online regional sessions:
- North/Central San Rafael: August 21
- Ross Valley: August 22
- Southern Marin: August 5
- West Marin: August 20
- North Marin/Novato: August 22
In-person regional sessions:
- North/Central San Rafael: August 27
- Ross Valley: August 12
- Southern Marin: August 26
- West Marin: August 28
- North Marin/Novato: August 29
An online survey to provide input on local priorities for the bond measure will be available in early August. The anonymous survey will take less than 10 minutes to fill out and is open through the end of August on MarinHousingBond.org. Anyone requesting a paper survey can email CDA staff.
The Board of Directors for the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) voted June 26 to place the measure on the ballots in the counties of Marin, Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma.
The Bay Area’s housing market is one of the most expensive in the country. The shortage of affordable housing and resulting surge in homelessness is considered an economic and social crisis. The topics are two of the focus areas for the Marin County Board of Supervisors.
People of all income levels are leaving the Bay Area for good because of high costs of living or commuting more than 90 minutes to live in more affordable areas. Employers are having more trouble hiring and retaining a workforce. Local governments have fielded a growing number of requests to support housing development for low-income seniors, local workforces, people without homes, and other low-income residents.
Outreach to people of color, lower-income households, and special-needs community members is being prioritized because those populations are most at risk of losing housing.
Learn more about BAHFA online.