Who is Going To Live in All of Those Places? Part 5

Who is Going To Live in All of Those Places? Part 5

Continuing the conversation…about all those big buildings going up and the shift around housing that’s forcing no/slow growth mindsets to come to terms with thousands of new units and a slew of eight story buildings…All while wondering: Who the heck is going to live in all of those places?  

Just because I’m asking the question (and others like it: How many housing units are coming? What’s the breakdown of studios.1br, 2br? Condos vs rentals? Affordable vs market rate? What does affordable even mean? Who lives in the existing buildings? What are the rents? What are the tenant demographics? What are the vacancy rates?)  doesn’t mean I’m opposed to growth or angry about the buildings.

In fact, I’m cautiously optimistic to see new energy and “investment” going into our tired streetscapes. After 40 years of limiting growth, denying the inevitability of change and fixating on all the things we don’t want as a community, we’re finally at a place where we have to say what we do want.  

Instead of wringing our hands about the lack of housing for (take your pick): low income residents, the marginal and underserved, moderate wage-earners, the middle class (whatever that is), service workers, retail workers, ag workers, teachers, firefighters, growing families, millennial techies, downsizing seniors and students, we’re finally building some.

But are we building the right places in the right locations? Maybe I’m just another out of touch boomer or maybe the scale of change is bigger than I’m used to thinking about, but right now, I can’t quite wrap my head around who is going to live in those places. 

Are those future residents here now, just waiting? Are there that many students? Is it a “build it and they will come” thing? Is this a social engineering experiment to alter lifestyles? Are we trying to create supply any way possible, so vacancy rates rise and rents drop over time? Inquiring minds want to know. 

Given that housing is our #1 priority and, like it or not, those buildings are coming, it’s shocking to see how little accurate, up-to-date information or comprehensive data is actually available when it comes to existing housing projects, those underway and others on the drawing board.

Try it yourself: read the newspapers, attend planning meetings, join a YIMBY/NIMBY Facebook group, log on to a website that purports to track all the new development details and housing stats, what you’ll get is a big firehose of information that’s more confusing than enlightening.  

Is anyone actually keeping track of housing data? Or are developers so giddy about finally being able to build, they’re launching as many units, as fast as they can, just in case the window closes again?