Hospital South Lot needs a Plan B

It is a shame that no developers could come up with any hospital South Lot housing options that more forcefully address the valley’s affordable housing crisis. From what I see, none of the three developer proposals is any good; it’s all market rate, not accessible to anyone who’s annual income falls in a range around the Area Median Income (AMI); there’s nothing more than the minimum required inclusionary units.

These three proposals are business as usual, and will continue to tip Sonoma towards becoming Tiburon or Carmel, which is starting to seem like an unmitigated disaster for the working class around here.

This leaves Norman Gilroy’s proposal as the current RFP process’s final option. If the hospital board must choose now, and cannot explore further options, I suggest taking Norman’s proposal as the most ethical and socially responsible.

Or go for a Plan B. For this Plan B I suggest a sale of the land to a coalition of the city and county, who can then bring their resources to bear to create more AMI affordable housing, which is a top governmental priority. The city and county can be helped with financing by the philanthropic community, who has plenty of funds, and who now knows, as a result of the Hidden in Plain Sight study, that affordable housing is a top, unaddressed priority for giving.

One philanthropist could easily buy the South Lot and give it to a city/county coalition to develop, in a way similar to the Broadway Altimira Apts. Shoot, the price would only be @ nine Ferrari sports cars.

Plan B: Sell the land to a local government coalition, at a price that will allow the hospital to pay off the South Lot loan, and make a 15% profit. The government coalition then can procure Wall Street financing through housing tax credits and pay for the project just like the SAHA project on Broadway. If that’s not possible, get 20 philanthropists to each pony up a million each, and there is 50 AMI affordable units done by a non-profit developer.

If the hospital board gives a Plan B option, and government and top philanthropic actors can’t get together on this, then the public will know that the housing issue is beyond the ability of government and philanthropy actors to address. Or that high density infill in white residential areas is unofficially off limits, and that segregation of affordable housing will continue, and be limited to peripheral areas pushing into greenfield open spaces.

The South Lot range of proposals, except for Norman’s, are a very disappointing show of what the market is going to do to address our regional housing crisis. Unfortunately, it seems business as usual has a mal-adaptive inertia, that disproportionately serves those who already have enough, and continues to deprive those who don’t. There are always plausible excuses, and then a paucity of needed action. The public needs some ACTION here, enough talk and process already.

I know the hospital board’s decision here is more complicated than the considerations I have brought forth, yet as the hospital knows from its own recent struggles to make ends meet, what is at stake here is serving community needs. And since housing is a regional, national, systemic issue that can’t be fixed by pulling one lever, all community members have a to play a part in a group effort in addressing our collective, local affordable housing crisis.

My suggestion to the hospital board: Don’t take any of the market rate proposals. If for some reason a decision is needed now, take Norman Gilroy’s proposal. If there is room for cream, give one more chance for a South Lot government/ philanthropic proposal that will address area median income housing needs.