Ordinance 3454-15 with Exhibits A- C

EVERETT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN It should be noted that while we can identify projected needs, and develop policies, programs and strategies to attempt to meet the housing needs of the community, the City does not build housing, and has only a minor influence in the dynamics of the regional real estate market. GMA does not require the City to meet the community's housing needs by ensuring production of housing for specific household income levels. Data indicates that in Everett, the housing needs of extremely low income households can only be met by substantial subsidies, while those of very low income households usually require a subsidy, and those of low income households can generally be met by the supply of market rate housing. Since Everett already provides significantly more opportunities for lower income households than nearly all other communities within Snohomish County, it will not use the numbers stated above as targets. Everett acknowledges the need, but rather than state a policy with specific targets, it will focus on maintaining and improving existing affordable housing stock. It is unrealistic to believe that the high number of new housing units required to meet Everett's growth targets can reasonably include 22% with moderate to substantial subsidies. Everett prefers to increase its proportion of market rate households to more closely resemble the countywide averages, and advocates that other communities in Snohomish County increase their proportion of future housing units affordable to households in the low to extremely low income categories. IV. Goal, Objectives and Policies The following section contains the goal, objectives and policies for the Housing Element of the Everett Growth Management Comprehensive Plan. This section states the City's policies for addressing and attempting to meet the housing needs for the community. However, actually meeting all projected housing needs will require many actions by individual households, other organizations, including the for-profit and non-profit housing developers, other cities, county governments in the region, and the State and Federal governments. Since data indicates that the housing needs of Everett households with moderate or higher incomes are adequately served by market rate housing, the policies herein provide more attention on the housing needs of households earning 80% or less of Area Median Income (AMI) for Snohomish County. The statements of "goals, objectives and policies" are intended to guide the public and those who make decisions about our future. Goals are broad statements of the community's desires. The objective statements are more descriptive and imply actions or programs that will move the City toward attainment of the goal. The policy statements describe specific actions to be undertaken for the City to realize the objectives and goals. Goal 4.0 The goal of the Housing Element is to provide sufficient housing opportunities to meet the needs of present and future residents of Everett for housing that is decent, safe, accessible, attractive and affordable. A. Housing Types and Opportunities Objective 4.1 The City shall promote a wide variety of choices for safe and decent housing for all citizens through a variety of housing types within the Everett Planning Area. HOUSING ELEMENT 23