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Home Resource Center In the News Home Greenbelt Alliance in the News |
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Greenbelt Alliance In the News
September 5, 2004 Desirable land
Letter to the Editor BylineEDITOR: Protecting open space with urban growth boundaries is not causing a housing shortage ("Construction of new homes lags demand," Tuesday). Affordable housing is a problem throughout the Bay Area, in communities with and without urban growth boundaries. In fact, urban growth boundaries make communities more desirable places to live. Cities with growth controls are surrounded by open space and are more likely to have distinct identities and lively downtowns. Surely we shouldn't stop preventing sprawl and making our communities more desirable. However, we do need to accommodate the demand. A range of housing options, like townhouses, apartments, and single-family homes on smaller lots needs to accompany urban growth boundaries. More options mean more affordability, not less. Urban growth boundaries are just the first step. Cities and counties need to adopt policies that fund affordable housing and encourage higher densities in city centers. We've got a long way to go to make housing more affordable in Sonoma, but the answer is not paving over our farmlands, rolling hills and redwood forests. KELLY BROWN Greenbelt Alliance, Sonoma Marin Field Representative, Santa Rosa ### |
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