Introduction
“Miami Dade County is the most unaffordable place in the country” states Mayor Daniella Levine Cava April 8th, 20221. According to Florida International University Jorge M. Perez Metropolitan Center, 57 % of its households pay more than 30% of their income in housing costs and more than 32.3 % of renter households pay more than 50% of their income on rent. Housing affordability has reached crisis level in Miami, threatening its economy, businesses, and neighborhoods.2
This problem is not unique to South Florida. There are only 36 affordable and available rental homes for every 100 extremely low-income renter household. There is no county in the United States where a full-time minimum wage worker can afford a two-bedroom rental. Covid-19 has made this worse and more apparent.3 Miami Dade just happens to be at the epicenter of this growing concern.
The causes for this acute problem in Miami are related among other issues to the immigration of wealthy Latin-Americans that have swept up properties with attractive cash offers. This situation was fueled by the Tax-Cuts and Jobs act of 2017 that significantly reduced taxes to individuals and businesses. In addition, the expansion of technology and finance firms to the Miami area that have attracted employees and associates offering them higher salaries, have given the area an influx of cash that has escalated the prices of homes and rentals alike.
The city notably has a large population of lower skilled, lower-income residents. Fifty two percent of residents work in occupations with median annual earnings less than $35,000 and an estimated 72% of Miami’s workers earn less than $75,000,2 making the comparable high cost of homes and rentals out of reach.
It seems clear this challenge is complex and will require a muti-pronged approach that includes legal, economic, policy and design changes. Given this reality, how will we begin to address the question of affordable housing inequality in Miami? Can the Black church play a significant role in solving this ever-growing issue?
The Black church in Miami seems to be in a unique position to contribute to the growing concern of lack of affordable housing in the area. Their ownership of land in strategically located urban lots in cities such as Overtown or Liberty City is of grand advantage given the rising costs of property in the County, especially near public transit. The church will require partners to help develop economic models that will allow them to revitalize their mission. This paper seeks to explore the potential role that Miami black churches play in solving this important issue as well as identifying the challenges that they confront in the process of serving their community.
The Black Community in Miami
The issue of unaffordability is particularly true for the African American community. People of color are more likely than white households to pay over half their income on rent and make up 80% of eviction cases.3Covid 19 only made this more obvious as the black community as well as Indigenous and Hispanic people suffered disproportionately from the virus.4
According to Mr. Antonio Prado, Executive Director of Collective Empowerment Group of South Florida, Miami blacks have traditionally had lower incomes compared with black people in other cities. It is not clear why, but a contributing factor may have been the steady influx of immigrants willing to perform work at lower rates to ensure survival. Blacks with exceptional talent and ability, through considerable effort have risen in professions such as medicine, law, and accountancy as well as sports and entertainment, but there is no strong middle class with upward mobility. There are significant disparities of income and wealth among Miami blacks.
Inequalities in the Black community after slavery date back to the Reconstruction post-Civil War era. The progress gained after The Homestead Act of 1862 and the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 gradually disappeared. Two hundred and seventy acres of public land were initially distributed to private citizens including freed slaves. With the establishment of The Black Codes (1865-1867) and the birth of the Ku Klux Klan in 1866, over time land distributed among blacks was slowly taken back into the hands of previous slave owners.
At the time of Miami’s incorporation in 1896, the fortunes of black Americans had declined. The illusions and notable accomplishments of the freedmen during Reconstruction had succumbed to the harsh realities of economic dependency and the restoration of white Democratic rule in the South.5
While the Supreme Court struck down racially restrictive covenants in 1848 and the Fair Housing Act outlawed them in 1896, the aftermath of discrimination continued affecting African Americans till modern days. For much of the twentieth century zoning decided who could live in each neighborhood and what type of buildings could be erected. Zoning also led to widespread environmental injustice, where buildings and institutions wealthy people sought to avoid were in low-income neighborhoods.6
Redlining, a discriminatory practice that withheld mortgage and financial services from customers that resided in “hazardous” neighborhoods which typically affected racial and ethnic minorities was common practice.
Throughout the twentieth century, government agencies in Dade County played a powerful role in creating and sustaining housing segregation. A variety of plans and policies were either implemented or attempted to move blacks into designated areas. Highways were built through black cities with this purpose. In the early 1930’s, most of Dade County’s black population was crowded into a fifty-block area known as “Colored Town”, today called Overtown. Miami had the highest degree of residential segregation by race in 1940, 1950 and 1960.7
Today, most of the black community in Miami, approx. 471,312 people, (17.7% of the overall population) 8 resides in cities such as Liberty City, Brownsville, West Grove, West Little River, Richmond Heights, Goulds, Little Haiti, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens, North Miami Beach and of course Overtown.
The Black Church in Miami
Churches have been vital in the history of black communities since slavery. They were a unifying force of its congregants during the oppressive years that ensured survival and later became one of the parents of the civil rights movement.
In Colored Town, if schools were few, churches were abundant. Baptist churches were the most numerous, but there were many Methodist and Episcopal churches as well as a few Seventh Day Adventist, Pentecostal, and Church of God congregations. The prevalence of churches underlined the significance of religion in black communities. Spiritual, social, and political activities took place frequently in churches making them a vital part of society and of American history.5
Miami’s numerous black churches own a significant number of properties in inner cities, including vacant sites, suitable for real estate development. This puts them in a very privileged position to contribute to the growing problem of lack of affordable housing both within and outside their community. They face however multiple development challenges described below.
Challenges in Land Development:
- Lack of financial resources (cash) to pay for upfront pre-development costs such as surveys, architectural fees, and legal fees to facilitate the entitlement and creation of the necessary infrastructure to begin a project.
- Lack of development knowledge, skills and expertise among their key staff, necessary to develop properties into sustainable revenue resources.
- The internal governance of Black churches is another challenge. The pastor is selected and contracted by the congregants through a Board of Deacons, Elders and Trustees who might have the ultimate say, often complicating negotiations with outside partners.
- Lack of uniformity in organizational structures. Each black church operates on its own with its individual governance making for a fragmented religious community.
- An inherent sense of mistrust in external investors. Gaining the trust of the church pastor and the congregation’s key staff and governance members proves difficult. The issue may be routed in expectations and unfulfilled promises in the past and the fear of embarking on a development project with all its legal and financial consequences.
- Rezoning. Most church sites don’t have the appropriate zoning for a residential or mixed-use project. Rezoning in Miami is often a complicated process.
- Adequate infrastructure. Water/sewer may not be available at the property line or may require substantial off-site improvements which add costly delays.
- The nation has become more secular over the last fifty years making the church vulnerable. More progressive black pastors try to actively involve young attendees and become relevant to their surrounding communities to survive and prosper. The black church remains however an important source of support for lower income congregants making balancing their finances even more challenging.
- Miami lacks a cohesive, organized civic infrastructure of local stakeholders. This has resulted in a disproportionate role for the public sector in tackling affordable housing for lower income individuals and families. The church does not count, except in few cases with the help of other (white) churches or well-off black members. Without the financial and political power, it becomes difficult to get elected officials to engage. Even with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the forefront, the lack of understanding of the Church’s needs doesn’t allow for real progress to happen.
- As the affordable housing crisis in Miami becomes more severe, many developers are knocking on the doors of Black churches, seeking to buy their properties or joint venture in the development of vacant sites or repurposing of existing buildings.9Many churches find the only way is to sell out their property to an outside developer to create cash-flow for their everyday needs.
Working Towards Solutions
Progressive, cutting-edge ideas in the field of affordable housing have come slow to South Florida. Leading voices in the nation came to a consensus, more than a decade ago, that the deeply ingrained poverty in many inner-city areas could not be effectively addressed by housing solutions alone. A growing awareness that answers to racial and economic disparities suggests the need for a comprehensive approach that include the areas of healthcare, education, transportation, and childcare among others.
Other States have been more successful in addressing the issue wholistically. Solutions such as Habitat for Humanity’s Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, Purpose Built Communities and Trauma Informed Community Building are examples of efforts to a more inclusive approach to solving the very complex issue of affordable housing.9
Non-profits can play a significant and crucial role in contributing to the solution. Entities like Enterprise Community Partners exists to increase the supply of affordable homes, advance racial equity after decades of systematic racism in housing, support residents and strengthen communities to be resilient to the unpredictable and make upward mobility possible.10 The Faith-Based Development Initiative was created to help churches and other mission-driven organizations develop underutilized land to meet their community’s needs.
Their premise is that the high cost of land is a barrier to the production of affordable housing and houses of worship can further their congregation’s mission by offering land for free or at a discount which reduces the cost of production. With proper training, resources such as grants and capital, access to vetted partners and technical assistance and tools, churches can develop affordable housing and community facilities.
Their national program, funded by Wells Fargo includes the following:
- A series of no-cost training and peer learning sessions designed to help houses of worship understand and navigate the development process.
- Provide funding support to help advance their projects from vision to completion, providing market study & feasibility analysis grants (up to $10,000); recoverable pre-development grants (up to $40,000) and access to Enterprise capital products.
- Tailored technical assistance to faith-based developers.
- Access to a vetted list of key development partners such as Architects, Real Estate/land use lawyers and Real Estate developers/development consultants.
- Online library of tools and resources.3
Their goal in Miami is to facilitate the building of 1000 affordable housing units over the next five years. They believe homeownership is a priority to help communities prosper long term.
The Faith Based Development Technical Assistance Cohorts (Atlanta and South Florida) curriculum shows in detail the steps involved in preparing the churches trusted parties to develop their land. The new Enterprise/ Wells Fargo program will soon be extended to New York City, Baltimore, and Seattle. “Miami Dade County is the most unaffordable place in the country” states Mayor Daniella Levine Cava April 8th, 20221. According to Florida International University Jorge M. Perez Metropolitan Center, 57 % of its households pay more than 30% of their income in housing costs and more than 32.3 % of renter households pay more than 50% of their income on rent. Housing affordability has reached crisis level in Miami, threatening its economy, businesses, and neighborhoods.2
This problem is not unique to South Florida. There are only 36 affordable and available rental homes for every 100 extremely low-income renter household. There is no county in the United States where a full-time minimum wage worker can afford a two-bedroom rental. Covid-19 has made this worse and more apparent.3 Miami Dade just happens to be at the epicenter of this growing concern.
The causes for this acute problem in Miami are related among other issues to the immigration of wealthy Latin-Americans that have swept up properties with attractive cash offers. This situation was fueled by the Tax-Cuts and Jobs act of 2017 that significantly reduced taxes to individuals and businesses. In addition, the expansion of technology and finance firms to the Miami area that have attracted employees and associates offering them higher salaries, have given the area an influx of cash that has escalated the prices of homes and rentals alike.
The city notably has a large population of lower skilled, lower-income residents. Fifty two percent of residents work in occupations with median annual earnings less than $35,000 and an estimated 72% of Miami’s workers earn less than $75,000,2 making the comparable high cost of homes and rentals out of reach.
It seems clear this challenge is complex and will require a muti-pronged approach that includes legal, economic, policy and design changes. Given this reality, how will we begin to address the question of affordable housing inequality in Miami? Can the Black church play a significant role in solving this ever-growing issue?
The Black church in Miami seems to be in a unique position to contribute to the growing concern of lack of affordable housing in the area. Their ownership of land in strategically located urban lots in cities such as Overtown or Liberty City is of grand advantage given the rising costs of property in the County, especially near public transit. The church will require partners to help develop economic models that will allow them to revitalize their mission. This paper seeks to explore the potential role that Miami black churches play in solving this important issue as well as identifying the challenges that they confront in the process of serving their community.
The Black Community in Miami
The issue of unaffordability is particularly true for the African American community. People of color are more likely than white households to pay over half their income on rent and make up 80% of eviction cases.3Covid 19 only made this more obvious as the black community as well as Indigenous and Hispanic people suffered disproportionately from the virus.4
According to Mr. Antonio Prado, Executive Director of Collective Empowerment Group of South Florida, Miami blacks have traditionally had lower incomes compared with black people in other cities. It is not clear why, but a contributing factor may have been the steady influx of immigrants willing to perform work at lower rates to ensure survival. Blacks with exceptional talent and ability, through considerable effort have risen in professions such as medicine, law, and accountancy as well as sports and entertainment, but there is no strong middle class with upward mobility. There are significant disparities of income and wealth among Miami blacks.
Inequalities in the Black community after slavery date back to the Reconstruction post-Civil War era. The progress gained after The Homestead Act of 1862 and the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 gradually disappeared. Two hundred and seventy acres of public land were initially distributed to private citizens including freed slaves. With the establishment of The Black Codes (1865-1867) and the birth of the Ku Klux Klan in 1866, over time land distributed among blacks was slowly taken back into the hands of previous slave owners.
At the time of Miami’s incorporation in 1896, the fortunes of black Americans had declined. The illusions and notable accomplishments of the freedmen during Reconstruction had succumbed to the harsh realities of economic dependency and the restoration of white Democratic rule in the South.5
While the Supreme Court struck down racially restrictive covenants in 1848 and the Fair Housing Act outlawed them in 1896, the aftermath of discrimination continued affecting African Americans till modern days. For much of the twentieth century zoning decided who could live in each neighborhood and what type of buildings could be erected. Zoning also led to widespread environmental injustice, where buildings and institutions wealthy people sought to avoid were in low-income neighborhoods.6
Redlining, a discriminatory practice that withheld mortgage and financial services from customers that resided in “hazardous” neighborhoods which typically affected racial and ethnic minorities was common practice.
Throughout the twentieth century, government agencies in Dade County played a powerful role in creating and sustaining housing segregation. A variety of plans and policies were either implemented or attempted to move blacks into designated areas. Highways were built through black cities with this purpose. In the early 1930’s, most of Dade County’s black population was crowded into a fifty-block area known as “Colored Town”, today called Overtown. Miami had the highest degree of residential segregation by race in 1940, 1950 and 1960.7
Today, most of the black community in Miami, approx. 471,312 people, (17.7% of the overall population) 8 resides in cities such as Liberty City, Brownsville, West Grove, West Little River, Richmond Heights, Goulds, Little Haiti, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens, North Miami Beach and of course Overtown.
The Black Church in Miami
Churches have been vital in the history of black communities since slavery. They were a unifying force of its congregants during the oppressive years that ensured survival and later became one of the parents of the civil rights movement.
In Colored Town, if schools were few, churches were abundant. Baptist churches were the most numerous, but there were many Methodist and Episcopal churches as well as a few Seventh Day Adventist, Pentecostal, and Church of God congregations. The prevalence of churches underlined the significance of religion in black communities. Spiritual, social, and political activities took place frequently in churches making them a vital part of society and of American history.5
Miami’s numerous black churches own a significant number of properties in inner cities, including vacant sites, suitable for real estate development. This puts them in a very privileged position to contribute to the growing problem of lack of affordable housing both within and outside their community. They face however multiple development challenges described below.
Challenges in Land Development:
- Lack of financial resources (cash) to pay for upfront pre-development costs such as surveys, architectural fees, and legal fees to facilitate the entitlement and creation of the necessary infrastructure to begin a project.
- Lack of development knowledge, skills and expertise among their key staff, necessary to develop properties into sustainable revenue resources.
- The internal governance of Black churches is another challenge. The pastor is selected and contracted by the congregants through a Board of Deacons, Elders and Trustees who might have the ultimate say, often complicating negotiations with outside partners.
- Lack of uniformity in organizational structures. Each black church operates on its own with its individual governance making for a fragmented religious community.
- An inherent sense of mistrust in external investors. Gaining the trust of the church pastor and the congregation’s key staff and governance members proves difficult. The issue may be routed in expectations and unfulfilled promises in the past and the fear of embarking on a development project with all its legal and financial consequences.
- Rezoning. Most church sites don’t have the appropriate zoning for a residential or mixed-use project. Rezoning in Miami is often a complicated process.
- Adequate infrastructure. Water/sewer may not be available at the property line or may require substantial off-site improvements which add costly delays.
- The nation has become more secular over the last fifty years making the church vulnerable. More progressive black pastors try to actively involve young attendees and become relevant to their surrounding communities to survive and prosper. The black church remains however an important source of support for lower income congregants making balancing their finances even more challenging.
- Miami lacks a cohesive, organized civic infrastructure of local stakeholders. This has resulted in a disproportionate role for the public sector in tackling affordable housing for lower income individuals and families. The church does not count, except in few cases with the help of other (white) churches or well-off black members. Without the financial and political power, it becomes difficult to get elected officials to engage. Even with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the forefront, the lack of understanding of the Church’s needs doesn’t allow for real progress to happen.
- As the affordable housing crisis in Miami becomes more severe, many developers are knocking on the doors of Black churches, seeking to buy their properties or joint venture in the development of vacant sites or repurposing of existing buildings.9Many churches find the only way is to sell out their property to an outside developer to create cash-flow for their everyday needs.
Working Towards Solutions
Progressive, cutting-edge ideas in the field of affordable housing have come slow to South Florida. Leading voices in the nation came to a consensus, more than a decade ago, that the deeply ingrained poverty in many inner-city areas could not be effectively addressed by housing solutions alone. A growing awareness that answers to racial and economic disparities suggests the need for a comprehensive approach that include the areas of healthcare, education, transportation, and childcare among others.
Other States have been more successful in addressing the issue wholistically. Solutions such as Habitat for Humanity’s Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, Purpose Built Communities and Trauma Informed Community Building are examples of efforts to a more inclusive approach to solving the very complex issue of affordable housing.9
Non-profits can play a significant and crucial role in contributing to the solution. Entities like Enterprise Community Partners exists to increase the supply of affordable homes, advance racial equity after decades of systematic racism in housing, support residents and strengthen communities to be resilient to the unpredictable and make upward mobility possible.10 The Faith-Based Development Initiative was created to help churches and other mission-driven organizations develop underutilized land to meet their community’s needs.
Their premise is that the high cost of land is a barrier to the production of affordable housing and houses of worship can further their congregation’s mission by offering land for free or at a discount which reduces the cost of production. With proper training, resources such as grants and capital, access to vetted partners and technical assistance and tools, churches can develop affordable housing and community facilities.
Their national program, funded by Wells Fargo includes the following:
- A series of no-cost training and peer learning sessions designed to help houses of worship understand and navigate the development process.
- Provide funding support to help advance their projects from vision to completion, providing market study & feasibility analysis grants (up to $10,000); recoverable pre-development grants (up to $40,000) and access to Enterprise capital products.
- Tailored technical assistance to faith-based developers.
- Access to a vetted list of key development partners such as Architects, Real Estate/land use lawyers and Real Estate developers/development consultants.
- Online library of tools and resources.3
Their goal in Miami is to facilitate the building of 1000 affordable housing units over the next five years. They believe homeownership is a priority to help communities prosper long term.
The Faith Based Development Technical Assistance Cohorts (Atlanta and South Florida) curriculum shows in detail the steps involved in preparing the churches trusted parties to develop their land. The new Enterprise/ Wells Fargo program will soon be extended to New York City, Baltimore, and Seattle.
The Community Reinvestment Act of 1976, a law designed to encourage commercial banks and savings associations to help meet the needs of borrowers in all segments of their communities, including low and moderate-income neighborhoods11 has allowed non-profits such as Enterprise to be funded. Wells Fargo has partnered with them to help the flow of funds to reach the developers willing to bring the projects to life. Partners such as the Collective Empowerment Group of South Florida facilitate the connection between a large national organization such as Enterprise and local professionals developing these projects. The power of all these parties working together can change communities for the better.
Collective Empowerment Group of South Florida: Projects in Miami-Dade County
Initially created to provide homebuyer training, credit counseling services and fairness in lending practices, the CEG has expanded its role to help local churches develop vacant sites or repurpose under-utilized property.9
The non-profit is developing a deep bench of working relationships that will allow it to take advantage of the pre-development funding allowed by the new Enterprise/Wells Fargo initiative. Participating architects, zoning/land use attorneys, general contractors and developers will work within the program’s framework.
Each site location and congregation’s needs differ widely making it difficult to follow a uniform development model. Financing sources may include combinations of traditional banks, Community Development Financial Institutions, local and state subsidies, social impact investors and capital market entities. In collaboration with national organizations like Enterprise, CEG can work locally with churches to develop their properties bringing much needed revenue and helping further their mission of supporting their community’s wellness.
Committed to tackling the challenges of affordable housing in the city, CEG is developing project-based solutions that centers on homeownership as a mean to create long term financial security and stability for low-income families.
The following are three CEG projects under planning (refer to attachments):
- Bethel Apostolic Temple:
A mid-size Black congregation on a high-traffic North Miami-Dade County street. The existing 54,000 SF building is largely unused, except for religious services and it is intended to be repurposed. The church pastor and its key leaders are currently in the decision-making phase of moving forward with the development of the project.
Project includes:
1-110-unit Senior Assisted Living Facility (6 story building)
- 80 workforce rentals (5 story building)
3-Repurpose a mostly vacant 54,000 SF 2 story building, preserving the Sanctuary area.
- New Covenant Presbyterian Church:
A small, older Black congregation, in a very central Miami- Dade location, near S.R. 112 and the Jackson Hospital District. The free-standing church Sanctuary has historical value, but the adjoining two-story school type building is in poor condition and is intended for demolition. New Covenant has just entered into a Project Management Agreement with CEG.
Project includes:
1- Renovation of existing Sanctuary building
2- Demolishing of existing 2-story school annex building and replacing it with possible combinations of urgent care facility and rental units for the elder.
The new project elements must generate enough cash to cover the cost of the non-revenue producing elements.
- Sweet Home Missionary Baptist Church:
A large and influential Black congregation, on a high traffic major South Miami Dade County street. A leading church with a wide range of civic and community programs. The existing large Church Complex building is in excellent condition. The high traffic exposure on Eureka Drive / S.W. 184th St. should be ideal for major commercial uses. The remaining vacant land is intended for low-density residential uses, in conformity with surrounding areas.
Proposed project includes:
1- Existing temporary school trailer to be removed.
2- Multi-purpose Community buildings:
-To be located close to church building.
-Two separate buildings (school and community outreach) on out-parcels with capacity for future expansion of each building.
– Size of each building will depend on non-revenue producing spaces within each building. Areas will need to be subsidized by other revenue-generating uses.
3-Commercial Building:
-To be located with frontage to Eureka Dr.
– Potential uses: healthcare services, child/adult day care, retail, business incubator.
– Create neighborhood focus groups for market/ needs assessment.
– CEG to help with recruiting tenants.
4-Housing Alternatives:
-To be located on North half of the property.
-Proposed buildings to be 2-3 stories tall.
-Will allow future flexibility by parceling out in the Master plan remaining land without
designated uses.
– Rental vs Sale analysis to be included.
-Ground lease likely to be retained by Sweet Home MBC in the cases of for sale units.
-Short term rentals for specialized training uses must be contemplated.
5- Re-plat of entire site will allow each parcel to be isolated and used as collateral if needed.
6- Proposal of timetable and strategy to use pre-development funding from the new national initiative Enterprise Community Partners/ Wells Fargo
Conclusion:
The issue of lack of affordable housing in Miami can no longer be ignored. Emergency measures have started to take place to avoid dire consequences in our society. Homelessness, crime, violence become inevitable in places where housing at affordable prices is not available.
The problem of affordable housing is complex and needs to be evaluated multidimensionally. Solutions will need to be comprehensive, integrating health care, child/adult care, transportation, and education among others.
The struggles caused by racial trauma has affected the black community long term. They have disproportionately suffered from lack of affordable housing leading to a high rate of evictions. Long term consequences of home instability are deteriorating our communities. We must start addressing this issue with lasting results.
The Black church has the potential to help solve this problem for local low-income residents. It’s ownership of land, working hand in hand with partners can make them a powerful engine with the potential to create affordable housing in inner cities.
Nonprofits such as Enterprise Community Partnerships paired with financial institutions like Wells Fargo can bring forward resources to create scalable and effective housing solutions. There are many challenges that the Black church faces including lack of financial knowledge and resources as well as governance issues and lack of community support, however strong partners such as non-profits and local universities engaged in research can help the process move forward.
FIU’s Miami affordable Housing Masterplan together with University of Miami’s Office of Civic & Community Engagement LAND-Land Access for Neighborhood Development Technical Documentation mapping tool can guide the community on how and in which areas to tackle the issue. We have the example of other cities such as Baltimore that have worked with non-profits like Enterprise Community Partnership to create affordable housing solutions. Now it is Miami’s turn.
It is beyond our moral obligation, a necessity for community sustainability to move the needle in the right direction. We collectively have the tools; it is a matter of working together. Public and private, non-profit and for profit alike can align to make this pressing issue a priority. We have reached a point where we have no choice. We need stakeholders to rise and have the political power to exert change. It is my hope for further generations to enjoy a community that embraces long term financial, psychological, and physical stability for the city through availability of affordable housing.