By Sara Huebener
The Savage Pacer published an article in its Saturday, May 1st issue regarding proposed use for the land behind Rainbow Foods in West Savage, off Connelly Parkway. The land use proposal would be for high-density "Workforce Housing" and would include two, three-story apartment buildings and four townhome buildings for a total of 156 housing units, a density of about 20 units per acre.
I'm not sure if I was the only one not "getting" what workforce housing was. The article pointed out the workforce housing is for entry-level workers who need to live close to where they work and need to build up equity to buy a home. Examples were listed as teachers, police officers and bank tellers, among others. The article distinguished workforce housing as having higher rents than "affordable" housing. So not government subsidized?
Am I the only one missing the connection on how someone is going to a) build up equity while they are renting, particularly b) if the rental rates are higher than anywhere else in the city, as they are claimed to be, thereby c) making it harder for an entry-level-salaried worker to stash money into a savings account for a downpayment?
Something about this was just not clear.
The article regarding Workforce Housing in West Savage can be found here: http://www.savagepacer.com/news/city-news/workforce-housing-one-component-new-option-behind-rainbow-104
I am perhaps uneducated on this concept and have much to learn. So, I will be watching this story closely. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this proposal.
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