Asked the City Manager to confer with the appropriate City departments to ensure multi-family properties on the market are reviewed as quickly as possible as potential affordable housing acquisitions

How it started

Mar 6, 2023 · Proposed by Councillor Nolan, Mayor Siddiqui, Vice Mayor Mallon, and Councillors McGovern and Carlone: a formal request from the Council to the administration.

What happened

Mar 6, 2023 · Held by charter right the city's note: “EXERCISED BY COUNCILLOR SIMMONS”

Mar 20, 2023 · Amendment carried Moved by Councillor E. Denise Simmons; carried.

the first “Ordered” to read: “ORDERED: That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to confer with the appropriate City departments and affordable housing providers to determine the feasibility and efficacy of creating a program that would ensure multi-family properties on the market, and those that may be headed towards the market in the near future, are reviewed as quickly as possible as potential affordable housing acquisitions; and be it further”

The clerk's words, from the minutes of Mar 20, 2023, p. 13.

Mar 20, 2023 · ✅ Order adopted as amended. The Council's request went to the City Manager. (unanimous)

View the roll call

Voted yes (9), unanimous

Burhan Azeem
Dennis Carlone
Alanna Mallon
Marc McGovern
Patty Nolan
E. Denise Simmons
Paul F. Toner
Quinton Zondervan
Sumbul Siddiqui

Roll call of Mar 20, 2023 · from the council’s minutes · photos: City of Cambridge

What’s next

⌛ No response on the docket: nothing has been filed back under this request's number. Answers sometimes arrive as other items; this ledger tracks only this one.

The document Agenda item attachment · 1 page

🏛 This item on the city's site 📄 Download original PDF

Multi-family properties that would make excellent candidates for homeownership opportunity are on the market currently -- for example on the market now is a 13 unit building for $7.7 million, and a building with 6 residential units and 3 retail units for $5.4 million; and

The per unit price in the listing prices of these two examples of about $600K/unit is below many recent affordable housing projects which have been as high as $900K/unit; and

If purchased by the City, these properties could expand access to affordable housing, and likely homeownership for residents and possibly add community space on the ground floor; now therefore be it

ORDERED: That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to confer with the appropriate City departments to ensure multi-family properties on the market are reviewed as quickly as possible as potential affordable housing acquisitions; and be it further

ORDERED: That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to report back to the City Council in a timely manner.

🗓 The meeting where this was taken up: Mar 6, 2023

Public Comment (2)

2 written comments received (2023-03-20 – 2023-04-03). Letter-writers are named in the city's own agenda and are not republished here, by policy.