Over the last few years, Medford has been quite active in working to provide more affordable housing within the city. The Office of Community Development has been lucky to obtain the skills and background of our new Affordable Housing Specialist, Ericka Schwartz.
Ms. Schwartz has been busy working on a number of projects that are helping the lower income population obtain affordable housing, such as the Rental and Ownership Affordable Housing Lotteries, and the First Time Home Buyer Program. Ms. Schwartz is great when it comes to working with the City Council and communicating updates to the City Council. She keeps the council apprised of what goes on through e-mails and meetings, which keeps us up to date and active on the issues. She introduced and asked for support on the Inclusionary Housing Policy, which would create housing that regular Medford residents CAN afford.
Though we are making strides, we like many other neighboring towns and cities, have many who cannot afford the high rent and prices of living. I agree that more needs to be done in Medford and if re-elected I will continue to support creating more affordable housing, whether its by encouraging developers to include affordable units in their developments, by supporting Ericka Schwartz's plans and hard work, or by pushing the In-Law apartment issue, that I have supported in the past.
