Late Order Re Adding $20 Million To Budget For Affordable Housing

City of Cambridge O-6 ORIGINAL ORDER IN CITY COUNCIL May 20, 2019 COUNCILLOR SIMMONS COUNCILLOR MALLON COUNCILLOR SIDDIQUI WHEREAS: On April 28, 2019, the City Council voted unanimously in favor of a Policy Order that stated “…the City Manager be and hereby is requested to work with the appropriate City staff to ensure that an additional commitment of $20 million from the City’s budget is devoted each year over the next five years (for a total of $100 million) toward the City’s efforts to preserve and create affordable housing units, and to report back to the City Council on this in a timely manner;” and WHEREAS: The City Council re-affirmed that vote with a subsequent Policy Order on February 11, 2019, asking for a response from the City Manager; and WHEREAS: The budget for FY20 does include additional funding for the creation and preservation of affordable housing, yet it falls short of the request from the City Council to devote an additional $20 million per year over the next five years to be spent on affordable housing; and WHEREAS: The City Council has declared, on numerous occasions, that the creation and preservation of affordable housing is one of its top priorities, and this body recognizes that a significantly larger investment of City dollars is necessary to have any appreciable, positive impact upon this matter; now therefore be it ORDERED: That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to direct the appropriate City personnel to re-examine the current allocation of funding designated for affordable housing, to provide an additional $20 million (that is not being redirected from other sources) on top of what has already been allocated towards the creation and preservation of affordable housing, and to report back to the City Council on this matter at the next regularly scheduled City Council meeting.