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51 <br /> <br />Strategy 4: Additional Options from the Working Group <br />Option Key Explanation <br />32. Regulate short-term rentals, such as <br />Airbnb’s. <br /> While short-term rentals help property owners earn <br />income, they also take units off the market that might <br />otherwise be rented to residents. More strictly <br />regulating short-term rentals could make more units <br />available for long term rental. <br />33. Invest in grants or low interest loans <br />for people to attend trade school, to <br />increase the number of skilled trades- <br />people for construction jobs. <br /> A lack of skilled laborers to do the work of building new <br />homes limits the pace at which construction can actually <br />happen. By giving grants (scholarships) or low interest <br />loans to people who would like to work in construction, <br />the City could both help those individuals (so they can <br />get good jobs) as well as boost the local labor supply. <br />This could lower the cost of construction in the long- <br />term. <br />34. Encourage employer-assisted housing <br />programs. <br /> Public and private employers have the ability to provide <br />down payment assistance, develop new housing, or <br />provide land for new housing. The City could promote <br />and educate local employers, create match funding <br />programs, or offer tax credits to employers. <br />35. Modify Neighborhood Associations. Eugene’s City-recognized Neighborhood Associations <br />have many functions. Part of their mission is to establish <br />two-way communication between neighborhoods and <br />the City, and between neighborhoods and other <br />external agencies. It also includes advocating the <br />association’s position on issues such as land use. <br />35-A: Encourage participation in <br />Neighborhood Associations so they <br />are more representative of the <br />people living in the neighborhood. <br /> <br />35-B: De-sanction the Neighborhood <br />Associations. <br /> <br />36. Advocate for an increase to the <br />minimum wage with closing the <br />housing affordability gap as a key <br />rationale. <br /> Regardless of housing costs, if wages stay low, people <br />will continue to be priced out of housing. In addition to <br />focusing on the supply of housing, the City could <br />advocate that the state and/or federal government <br />increase the minimum wage. <br />37. Develop a home-sharing program. This would likely be outside of the City’s scope of <br />programming, but private individuals (Ex: via Craigslist) <br />or an organization could take this on. <br />38. Use Eminent Domain in targeted cases <br />to increase density. <br /> Eminent Domain is a law that allows governments to <br />force a property owner to sell his/her land for public <br />use. It is often used when roads need to be expanded <br />into private property. Property owners do not have a <br />choice, they must sell, but the government has to pay <br />them a fair price. Eminent Domain could be used to <br />purchase properties to develop Affordable housing. <br />39. Create a housing action plan. <br /> A housing action plan could incorporate many of these <br />options along with additional tools and strategies. <br />December 10, 2018, Work Session - Item 2