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<br />11% to 16.9% of the people living there are people of color, between 16% and 30.5% of people <br />have a disability and between 20% and 39.9% of people are experiencing poverty. Directly adjacent <br />to the proposed railroad quiet zone are two of the tracts with the highest concentration of <br />communities of color with estimated populations between 17% and 22.8% as well as higher levels <br />of people living with disabilities and in poverty. Staff will continue to look for specific actions such <br />as providing informational signage in Spanish and English to make the project as inclusive as <br />possible. <br /> <br />Staff also engaged residents through the Lane Independent Living Alliance (LILA) and the local <br />chapter of the American Council of the Blind. These groups had numerous safety concerns and <br />recommendations to make the proposed safety improvements useful to the disabled community <br />3 ¥¤³¸ ¥®± ¯¤®¯«¤ ¶¨³§ £¨² ¡¨«¨³¨¤² <br />(see discussion above under ). <br /> <br />3®¢¨®ȃ%¢®­®¬¨¢ %¥¥¤¢³² <br />This category includes potential impacts on property values, neighborhood character, affordable <br />housing, business impacts, and parking. <br />)­¢±¤ ²¤£ ¯±®¯¤±³¸ µ «´¤² <br /> This is both an economic and a social consideration. There <br />appears to be general agreement that property values increase in areas near railroad tracks <br />when routine train horns are silenced. A 2013 analysis of home values in Plymouth, <br />Massachusetts, concluded that a quiet zone would increase market values for residential <br />properties in the range of 10%. A 2016 study, "Silence is Golden: Railroad Noise Pollution <br />and Property Values," by Jay Walker of Niagara University, found that the assessed value of <br />residential properties in Memphis, Tennessee, within the 65 decibel range of train <br />operations was 13% below properties with less noise exposure. That study also found no <br />significant property value decrease among commercial properties. A 2006 study on <br /> by William Bellinger of the Dickinson College of <br />Economics found that residential property values were found to decrease by about $4800, <br />or 4.1% of the sales value, per 10 decibels of added noise exposure. <br /> <br />Economically, this quiet zone effect might be seen as positive by those who own residential <br />property for personal or business investment purposes. However, to realize the economic <br />benefit, the property owner would have to sell or redevelop the property. Homeowners may <br />taxable assessed value could rise no more than 3% a year, mitigating the potential burden <br />of increased property taxes. On the social equity side, the concern is affordable housing. A <br />rise in housing prices could be mitigated by financial assistance programs for low-income <br />and/or low-income elderly homeowners such as state age/income deferral programs. It <br />also may be possible to create a <br />for assessment financing; however, funding would need to be identified for such a program. <br /> <br />The studies cited above are silent on the effect of increased property values on renters. <br />While a portion of the costs associated with higher property values and redevelopment may <br />be passed along to renters, demand for housing is a significant factor in determining rents. <br />in the downtown and Whiteaker areas. Increased livability may create more demand for <br />housing and lead to higher rents absent development agreements or other incentives to <br />control rents. It should be noted that there are many factors beyond the creation of a quiet <br />zone that go into determining livability, property values and related policies for affordable <br />housing and rent protection. <br /> 28 <br /> <br /> <br />