Huxtable sees more strides in affordable housing

An affordable housing task force has momentum right now, said a Lewes state senator, but legislation to change zoning so those homes can be built could have some pushback.

Local jurisdictions have control over local zoning issues, not the state, and any legislation to change that could face some opposition, said Sen. Russ Huxtable, D-Lewes, during a Jan. 8 Spotlight Delaware Legislative Summit.

“If the state starts dabbling in that local zoning, I can certainly imagine 57 different jurisdictions who do have that control may have something to say about that,” he said. “We’ll see how that consensus builds out once legislation is drafted and presented to the general public.”

Rent control would also be a tough sell in Delaware, Huxtable said. 

“It would dissuade a lot of developers who develop housing of any kind from coming into Delaware to develop,” he said. “They will choose New Jersey or Pennsylvania or Maryland.”

One thing that has to be taken into consideration is the rising cost of insurance. He said he has a friend whose insurance on affordable housing units has risen from $30,000 about three years ago to more than $100,000 today.

Under broad rent control, Huxtable said a renter would qualify for an affordable unit based on a salary, and would still be able to remain in the unit even if their salary increases considerably.

“That unit then isn’t serving the folks it's intended to serve,” Huxtable said. “It’s easy to say let’s do rent control, but harder to implement because of the impacts it’ll have.”

Huxtable said he is encouraged that Gov.-elect Matt Meyer wants to improve housing opportunities in Delaware, and a bill sponsored by Huxtable that passed last session to create the Delaware Workforce Housing Program would provide a vehicle for funding.