🔵 Per Affordable Housing Advocates, 70% of citizens who are unhoused in York County work full time. It’s time for area corporations to give York County workers a raise so they don’t have to choose between paying for food and paying rent.
🔵 Per a recent study commissioned by the York County Alliance, an astounding 50% of York County renters pay 30% or more of their income in rent (making them “housing insecure”).
🔵 Per the Community Progress Council’s recent op ed, 38% of York Countians can accurately be described as “working poor” meaning they’re just one car repair or one medical bill away from poverty.
🔵 And Bell Family Shelter (which does great work in the community) unfortunately is forced to turn away over 700 families per year due to lack of space. (Last year it was over 1,000 families).
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👉👉👉 There are 2 clear solutions to York County’s affordable workforce housing crisis & both could be championed by the York County Economic Alliance:
- The YCEA could lead its member corporations to sign the LIVING WAGE pledge. When York County workers are paid a living wage, they won’t have to choose between FOOD and PAYING RENT.
** How on earth do we expect area corporations to attract and retain employees at their York County facilities in order to compete in the world economy if their workers can’t afford to live in York County?
This is not just a “SUPPLY of affordable workforce housing” problem. This is also a “corporations pay too little for their workers to pay their basic bills” problem.
- The YCEA could lead its member corporations to champion legislation that would require all new residential developments in York County to reserve 20% of their units as “affordable” (by HUD standards). The other 80% of the units in each complex would be market rate.
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✴️✴️✴️ It’s sad to me that York business, political and community leaders have failed to combine efforts and resources provide public restrooms in the city of York. The lack of public restrooms in the city makes visitors, workers and residents feel unwelcome. It makes these folks feel like we just don’t care.
York leaders need to work in the near term to provide 5 sets of high quality public restrooms that are well maintained (and cleaned morning, noon and night, 7 days a week, 365 days a year). There should be 2 of these restrooms on West Market St., 2 on East Market St., 2 on North George St., 2 on South George St. and 2 on the square of York.
Our community has $37 billion of investable net assets. And our city has a GIGANTIC windfall from selling the sewer system that we’re just sitting on.
More info on solutions here: https://lnkd.in/eZpN-sZ9
And here‼️ https://lnkd.in/eBbmryiG
Clear Blue Sky 