In an earlier life, Montgomery County,(Md.) Councilman Bill Hanna worked as a scientist on NASA’s Apollo Space Program. After more than 25 years as a local elected official, he must have felt that it was easier to send a man to the moon than to build affordable housing in one of the nation’s wealthiest counties.
But as he told a workshop full of county officials: “It takes somebody to make things happen. Political leadership is the difference between whether or not you have successful affordable housing projects in your county.”
Hanna was there to share experiences which he says have given him national recognition as a leader in providing housing to low-and moderate-income residents of his county. “It’s not easy, and there is no magic formula. You just have to use every tool available.”
Montgomery County was one of the first in the country to require inclusionary zoning. Developers were required to build a certain number of affordable housing units to get their overall developments approved, and, according to Hanna, “it has worked extremely well.”
Another innovative technique he calls “productivity housing” uses air rights over commercial and industrial buildings as a way to increase affordable units. European cities are prime examples of municipalities where housing units are built right over shops, stores, and even manufacturing facilities, bringing workers closer to their jobs. Hanna is about to introduce legislation that will allow productivity housing in his county.
One of the biggest obstacles to building affordable housing is the old “not in my backyard” syndrome or NIMBYS. In a precise, clear-cut voice you would expect from a former NASA scientist, Hanna tells you what to do about NIMBY’S. “First, you pick out the most vocal leader of the opposition. Then you take him or her to breakfast.” Taking on a group is impossible, he says, but if you can sit down face to face and explain what you are trying to do, you would be amazed at how often that approach works.
“It’s up to you, the elected political leader of your county, to make things happen,” he says.
(County Services News was written by Rick Keister, NACo HOME project director.)