Note of Thanks and Encouragement for your work on the THV & EHV Draft Ordinance
Dear Humboldt County Planning Commissioners,
First, I want to express my appreciation for your thoughtful, sincere participation in the Public Hearing/Workshop for the Tiny House Villages & Emergency Housing Villages Draft Ordinance on April 18th. Your substantive responses to the presentation and the public comments were very encouraging and resulted in a good and much needed discussion of important ideas and alternatives. It truly focused on concerns that determine whether this ordinance will actually address the intentions or goals expressed in the Housing Element. Will the ordinance function to implement measures that address rural homelessness and affordable housing options for the unhoused that can be accomplished by communities in Humboldt?
The tiny house village provides a path forward to transitional and affordable housing within the grasp of a local community because it involves the community. What needs to be included in the ordinance to ensure it will provide these pathways into stable living opportunities for the most vulnerable? What is needed to simultaneously create an atmosphere where the village is organized and managed by stewards with the lived experience of homelessness; stewards who reside there and have previously vested time in development of the village? How do we ensure residents are centered in participatory, democratic decision-making for an accessible and sustainable housing paradigm that can improve the quality of life for everyone. These offer a bottom up approach to the provision of shelter that is economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable both for the individual and the city and/or county like Dignity Village, Opportunity Village, Occupy Madison and so many other inspiring projects across the country.
I encourage you to review a few pages in the following sections of the Humboldt County General Plan Housing Element, Approved in 2019, Appendix G: Housing Element Appendix as all of these refer to the unhoused in Humboldt:
8.7.9. Special Populations: Homeless Persons, Page 14 & 15
Nomadic Households, Page 16
8.8.5 Housing Characteristics: Housing Costs, Page 20
8.8.9 Housing for Special Populations: Homeless Persons, etc. Page 32 -37
I found this to be a helpful refresher in light of the fact that the numbers of unhoused are continually infused with newly and recurring people experiencing homelessness. The costs for housing to rent, or to buy, or to build are continually increasing. We are a very long way from reaching the needed accommodations for our low to extremely low income county residents. As you know, it seems things are only going to become more challenging.
With this Tiny House Villages and Emergency Housing Villages Draft Ordinance it is ever more important that we ensure the ordinance takes into account the actual rural homelessness conditions we are experiencing and what cities and counties will be required to do under the law in the future if AB 3093 passes, for example. Governor Newsom is sponsoring this legislation to expand local governments responsibility to plan for the housing needs of people experiencing and at risk of homelessness. The state will continue to take action to provide greater accountability and ensure that communities are aggressively working toward the creation of more housing and addressing the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness.” We need to act now to address these needs in Humboldt.
AB 3093 comes as part of recommendations by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) in their recently released California’s Housing Future 2040: The Next Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA). https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/planning-and-community/rhna/cahf-2040-rhna-report-2024.pdfis
Currently, RHNA categorizes those earning at or below 50% of Area Median Income (AMI) as very low-income. This bill would distribute this category into very low-income (30-50% AMI), extremely low-income (15-30% AMI), and acutely low-income (0-15% AMI), better preparing jurisdictions to plan for housing that meets the needs of the lowest-income households and people experiencing homelessness. Ultimately, this addresses the reality that we see. In turn, these updates will help HCD hold jurisdictions accountable to meeting their housing goals and addressing homelessness in their communities.
<https://www.gov.ca.gov/2024/05/07/governor-newsom-sponsors-legislation-to-expand-local-governments-responsibility-to-plan-for-the-housing-needs-of-people-experiencing-and-at-risk-of-homelessness/>
We need to make sure the County can implement affordable, attainable transitional villages and housing opportunities for those who are very low and acutely low income by the definitions above. Provisions must be included that elevate and honor the efforts of community-based organizations, mutual aid, smaller and nontraditional nonprofits, like AHHA. The County needs to be proactive in facilitating projects, seeking funding, and eliminating barriers wherever possible to alternative energies and progressive ways of making village living cost effective, sustainable and doable for our Humboldt communities.
I am concerned that the Planning Department may want to hurry this ordinance along, but I think that would be a serious mistake. We really need to talk about what it means for a community to have a stable setting, a village, where previously unhoused residents play a significant role in community development, while thriving and connecting to the community at large. And how this can be feasibly accomplished in light of costs and consequences. And how do we distinguish what will work best for the array of humans we have needing shelter and housing and community connection?
We have a wonderful opportunity here to work together and foster collaborations among a variety of interested parties: individuals and organizations as well as the County. It certainly behooves us to do so since we will be held to account for what we can accomplish but, more importantly, people will have safe, warm dry places to call home and thrive. At the same time, the extreme financial costs to our systems of healthcare, law enforcement/criminal justice, and the environment will be seriously diminished. Definitely a Win-Win.
I am looking forward to more conversation on the draft ordinance with a specific intent to make it a useful tool for our Humboldt County communities as every community needs a Tiny House Village option. And it takes a village to make it happen.
Thank you for your time, attention and the hard work you do on behalf of Humboldt County!
With Appreciation and Respect,
Nezzie Wade
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Nezzie Wade
She/Her/Hers
AHHA Board President
Affordable Homeless Housing Alternatives, Inc.
Cell: (707) 267-4035
Email: ahha.humco@gmail.com
Website: ahha-humco.org
PO Box 3794
Eureka, CA 95502