An affordable housing project planned for the Birchwood Neighborhood has raised concerns with people in the neighborhood about the possibility of the degradation of their property values due to the proposed project.
At the Birchwood neighborhood meeting on Sept. 28, neighbors voiced concerns over Kulshan Community Land Trust, a nonprofit development organization, plans to build 20 or more houses on a two-acre lot at the corner of West Indiana Street and Lafayette Street.
The Birchwood neighborhood is distinguished from other neighborhoods in Bellingham because of its relatively large lot sizes, with the bulk of the lots in the neighborhood measuring 20,000 square feet. This is compared to surrounding neighborhoods, like the Lettered Streets and Cornwall Park, where the average lot sizes are almost four times smaller.
The area where the proposed development would be built has an average lot size of measuring just below 5,000 square feet.
Jill Clark, development director at Kulshan, said she understands the concerns of the neighbors, but thinks Kulshan can show this type of housing can work in the Birchwood Neighborhood.
“Part of what we’re trying to promote is great housing that is sensitive to the neighborhood,” said Clark. “We want to build the right amount of housing for the space we have.”
According to a Kulshan press release in June, when the project was approved by the Bellingham City Council to progress by allowing the vacation of a portion of the West Indiana and Lafayette Street lots, “Kulshan CLT’s goal is to create a cluster of small, high performance, permanently affordable homes for income-qualified households.”
Another concern at the neighborhood meeting was whether or not the houses are going to be lived in by the owners or if they are going to become rentals and have the possibility of poor management.
Clark said the proposed housing is going to be lived in by the owners of the house.
“Renting is not allowed in the program,” said Clark. The houses are owner-occupied.”
Paul Schissler, policy advisor at Kulshan, said because the houses are owned, the homeowners will be concerned about the appearance of the property.
“Most homeowners tend to care more about their homes,” said Schissler. “Good property management leads to higher property values.”
Parking congestion is another issue raised at the neighborhood meeting regarding the proposed development. Clark said because of the location of the homes, the proximity to public transportation and downtown Bellingham, Kulshan is hoping they will be able to accommodate people who do not need or have cars.
As part of the project, Kulshan had to agree to build a trail, which will connect to the Bay to Baker trail.
The civil engineer and the surveyor will be meeting with city staff and there will be neighborhood meetings in the coming months with public hearings slated for spring.
Kulshan purchases land and holds the land in the trust indefinitely with the intent to sell homes to individuals and families of modest incomes. Kulshan currently has 94 homes in the trust and is funded in part by private donations and federal and state grants. ###
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