In an effort to assist individuals at the margins of the housing market, Thurston County may soon transfer empty and unused lots to eligible entities under a proposed ordinance now headed for public hearing.
The Thurston County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) will accept public testimony on the proposal at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 6.
The draft policy would amend Chapter 2.104.090 of the Thurston County Code by introducing a provision titled the “Real Property Special Disposition Process for Affordable Housing.”
Upon adoption, the ordinance would then authorize a transfer protocol enabling the BoCC to “transfer, lease, or dispose" underutilized county real estate or “surplus public properties” provided that the end-user adheres with the “public benefit” provisions of RCW 39.33.015.
The statute defines “public benefit” as affordable housing for households meeting low-income criteria clarified under RCW 43.63A.510.
According to the proposed ordinance, it is expected to deliver the following “public benefits”:
If enacted, it will be added to the Thurston County Code as Section 2.104.090.
The hearing will be held in-person and is open to members of the public. Written testimony is also being accepted in advance.
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CommonSenseSenior
Could anybody please put figures to this language? If you want our input we need to understand exactly what dollar figures for 2025 this language represents for Thurston County.
(a) "Affordable housing" means residential housing that is rented or owned by a person who qualifies as a very low-income, low-income, or moderate-income household or who is from a special needs population, and whose monthly housing costs, including utilities other than telephone, do not exceed thirty percent of the household's monthly income.
(b) "Very low-income household" means a single person, family, or unrelated persons living together whose income is at or below fifty percent of the median income, adjusted for household size, for the county where the affordable housing is located.
(c) "Low-income household" means a single person, family, or unrelated persons living together whose income is more than fifty percent but is at or below eighty percent of the median income where the affordable housing is located.
(d) "Moderate-income household" means a single person, family, or unrelated persons living together whose income is more than eighty percent but is at or below one hundred fifteen percent of the median income where the affordable housing is located.
Tuesday, May 6 Report this
CommonSenseSenior
Found this on Housing Authority website. These are gross incomes. According to this, I am (way below) extremely low income, family size one 77 yr old lady on social security. So for Affordable Housing I'd like to see all the new units for the public benefit, have rents that fit the hardest hit: extremely low income. If that's $24,500 a year then the 'rent' should be around $680/mo.
Effective April 1, 2025:
Family Size of 1
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $24,500
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $40,850
80% of Median - Low Income = $63,350
Family Size of 2
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $28,000
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $46,700
80% of Median - Low Income = $74,700
Family Size of 3
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $31,500
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $52,550
80% of Median - Low Income = $84,050
Family Size of 4
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $35,000
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $58,350
80% of Median - Low Income = $93,350
Family Size of 5
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $37,800
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $63,050
80% of Median - Low Income = $100,850
Family Size of 6
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $43,150
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $67,700
80% of Median - Low Income = $108,300
Family Size of 7
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $48,650
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $72,400
80% of Median - Low Income = $115,800
Family Size of 8
30% of Median - Extremely Low Income = $54,150
50% of Median - Very Low Income = $77,050
80% of Median - Low Income = $123,250
Tuesday, May 6 Report this