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3/25/2021
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Rep. Henries sponsors bill to create housing opportunities in urban neighborhoods
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 STATE HOUSE – Rep. Brianna E. Henries is sponsoring legislation that would encourage the development of multifamily housing in urban areas to help address Rhode Island’s affordable housing shortage.
The Opening the Market for Housing in Urban Areas Act of 2021 (2021-H 6093) would allow the development of “middle housing” — duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, cottage clusters and townhouses — in areas zoned for single-family development in cities and towns with populations of 20,000 or more. The bill defines “cottage clusters’ as groupings of no fewer than four detached homes per acre, each with a footprint of less than 900 square feet, sharing a common courtyard.
“We have an affordable housing crisis in Rhode Island, and we need to creatively work every angle to address it. Multifamily and cluster housing are more affordable and efficient than single-family homes, and they will help communities reach their affordable housing goals more quickly. And we need them built in urban, populated, walkable neighborhoods, where residents have better access to public transportation and nearby services,” said Representative Henries (D-Dist. 64, East Providence). “Zoning laws are supposed to steer development toward what we need, and what we desperately need in our neighborhoods is good-quality, affordable multifamily housing.”
The bill applies only to municipalities with populations of 20,000 or more — currently 18 of Rhode Island’s 39 cities and towns — and applies only to land already zoned residential. It retains local governing bodies’ authority to regulate siting and design of middle housing proposals, as long as they do not, individually or cumulatively, discourage the development of all types of middle housing. The bill would require those municipalities subject to it to adopt land-use regulations, such as adapting their comprehensive plans, to implement the change, and asks them to consider ordinances that further encourage middle housing development, such as waiving municipal fees.
The bill would not prevent single-family housing from being built on lots zoned for single family development. It would only broaden the options on such lots in urban neighborhoods to make more middle housing development possible.
Representative Henries said the bill is aimed at better leveraging new development for more Rhode Islanders.
“Every housing lot is an opportunity. Single family homes are an opportunity for one family. Making more of those lots available for middle housing means opportunity for several families. At a time when housing availability is a crisis in our state, we can’t afford not to widen the opportunities in ways like this,” she said.
The bill also promotes more environmentally sustainable development, because developing in urban areas reduces sprawl and deforestation, encourages reuse of previously developed lots and promotes public transportation use as well as pedestrian and bicycle commuting. Additionally, such development can be used to repurpose abandoned and blighted properties, revitalizing neighborhoods, she said.
“Sometimes people fear that affordable housing in their neighborhood is going to bring down their property values, that it’s going to be low-quality or bring in some ‘other’ kind of people, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth,” said Representative Henries. “Nobody wants to live in bad housing, and developers aren’t going to invest in that. The demand is for safe, pleasant homes that ordinary working people can afford. Building it will expand the city’s tax base and create stability for families, enabling them to work, get an education and contribute, supporting the city and local businesses.”
According to HousingWorksRI, there is no municipality in the state where a household with the median renter income of $34,255 can afford a fair-market two-bedroom apartment, and only three municipalities where a household with a $50,000 income can. Middle housing creates opportunities for those households, Representative Henries said.
The bill has hearing before the House Municipal Government and Housing Committee following today’s House session. It is cosponsored by Rep. David Morales (D-Dist. 7, Providence) and Rep. Karen Alzate (D-Dist. 60, Pawtucket).
For more information, contact:
Meredyth R. Whitty, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-1923
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