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Agenda Item

3.1 20-0360 Subject: Housing Element Annual Progress Report For Calendar Year 2019 From: Planning And Building Department Recommendation: Conduct A Public Hearing And Upon Conclusion Receive An Informational Report On The City Of Oakland's Housing Element Annual Progress Report For Calendar Year 2019

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    Emily Wheeler over 4 years ago

    This presentation is a travesty. Out of 2,228 new permits, only 106 were for the combined total of extremely low, very low, and low-income units. This should be called the Gentrification and Displacement Progress Report because that is what it is.

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    Jeff Levin, Senior Director of Policy, East Bay Housing Organizations over 4 years ago

    East Bay Housing Organizations submitted a more detailed letter directly to the City Councilmembers.

    Despite a decline last year, new construction is at record levels. From 1999 to 2014, the City produced an average of 690 units per year, rarely exceeding 1,000 units even at the height of the 10K program. In the past 5 years, it averaged 2,816 units per year.

    But nearly all the new housing is high end housing that is unaffordable to most Oakland renters and first-time homebuyers. Only 6.2% is affordable. In 2019 it was less than 4.8%.

    The City has met 168% of its need for market-rate housing and just 14% of its need for affordable housing.

    This much production should have yielded tens of millions of dollars in impact fees, but the long overdue audit of the impact fees has not been released - these funds must be made available as soon as possible.

    Failure to build affordable housing will exacerbate existing racial disparities in cost burden and make displacement even worse.