Workforce bears brunt of overcrowded housing in the Springs

Rising rents result in increased overcrowding in the Springs|

SPOTLIGHT ON HOUSING

Has Sonoma Valley’s “housing crisis” reached a tipping point? Many think so and are calling for action. But action from whom, and action as to what?

In this second part of our four-part series focused on Sonoma Valley housing needs, Index-Tribune reporter David Templeton takes a look at workforce housing in the Springs – who is in need and how much is it going to cost them?

Look for upcoming parts in the series in the coming Fridays, with stories highlighting perspectives from the real-estate industry, and the difficulties of young Sonomans struggling to make a life for themselves in their own hometown.

“Prohibido Estacionarse.”

Bolted to the high rear wall of the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn and Spa – arguably one of the most popular high-end resorts in Northern California – are several metal signs warning that parking there, along the unpaved shoulder of Sierra Drive, is strictly prohibited. By light of day, during weekday working hours, only a few cars dare to violate the no-parking rule.

But each night, as the sprawling neighborhood springs to life with residents returning from work, vehicles of all size – from beat-up classics to well-tended compacts to mud-spattered pickup trucks – become so numerous that locals have no choice but to cozy their car right up against the forbidden wall.

And anywhere else it can fit.

“This is actually a fairly densely populated neighborhood of workers and families,” observes architect Michael Ross, whose offices overlook Sierra Drive. “Quite often people who can’t afford a house of their own can still afford a car, so there are a whole lot of cars there.”

This, Ross says, is what medium density and high density housing currently looks like in the Springs area.

Noting the irony of so many members of the local working force living just outside the walls of an expensive resort, Ross adds, “The area is an example of how, on an ad hoc basis, a community has created workforce housing for itself. Unfortunately, the neighborhood doesn’t have the benefit of the infrastructure, or the parking, that is usually required to support that kind of housing.”

The crowded streets, of course, are just a hint of what it’s like inside many of those houses and apartments.

Two years ago, an American Community Survey was conducted to look at the issue of overcrowding across the county. According to the study, “overcrowding” is defined as 1 to 1.5 persons per room, with “severe overcrowding” defined at 1.5 person or more per room. Countywide, there were a total estimated number of 6,338 households (3.4%) experiencing overcrowding, and 2,775 (1.5%) with severe overcrowding, adding up to an estimated 9,113 households experiencing some form of overcrowding.

The survey then examined distinct regions, dividing Agua Caliente and Fetters, El Verano and Boyes into separate “census designated places.” According the 2014 study, there were an estimated 153 (9.5%) overcrowded households and 36 (2.2%) severely overcrowded households in Fetters and Agua Caliente.

In El Verano, overcrowding occurred in 146 households (9.3%) and severe overcrowding in 12 households (0.8%).

In Boyes, overcrowding occurred in an estimated 193 households (7.9%), with severe overcrowding found in an estimated 245 households (10.0%).

Compare those figures to the city of Sonoma itself, which according to the 2014 study revealed zero households experiencing any kind of overcrowding.

Clearly, the Springs area – the go-to spot for Sonoma Valley residents seeking affordable housing – is bearing the brunt of the workforce housing burden.

“Many working people are unable to afford market-rate housing, in the Springs and across the County,” agrees John Haig, Assistant Deputy Director of the Sonoma County Community Development Division. “There are many who are living in crowded conditions, and some who are living and working out of their cars, or tents, or shelters.”

It is not difficult to imagine a time when the infrastructure in the Springs will no longer support its expanding population, a population – it is key to understand – that is growing despite almost no expansion of actual housing.

At a recent meeting of the Sonoma Springs Alliance, the topic of rising housing costs in the area sparked vigorous post-meeting conversation, the general consensus being that a difficult situation is rapidly growing worse. With rents in the area rarely dropping below $1700 for a single bedroom apartment, and frequently exceeding $3000 for a two- or three-bedroom house, even well-paid workers must frequently blend two or three families together just to afford the monthly rent.

Additionally, according to many attendees at the meeting, a large number of homeowners in the Valley are simply taking advantage of the housing shortage by renting out their spare rooms, garages, and outbuildings for whatever the market will bear. One attendee described looking at a rental space in a garage, with a small bathroom and no working kitchen, shredded carpets, and in generally dilapidated condition.

The asking price was $1800 a month.

The situation clearly points to the need for more affordable workforce housing, spread out across the area.

“The need for affordable housing was identified as one of the top five challenges facing the community at the public workshops held for the Springs Specific Plan,” notes Maggie Fleming, Communications Director for the County’s Permit and Resource Management Department. Intended as a series of guidelines for future development of the area, the Springs Specific Plan is currently being developed by a team of consultants through a series of community workshops and the efforts of several community members working under the title of Community Advisory Team.

“The Specific Plan provides an opportunity to reexamine existing land uses and introduce changes designed to address some of the community’s challenges and move the Springs closer to the vision expressed during the workshops,” says Fleming. “The consultant team will be preparing three land use alternatives for the Specific Plan consistent with the community’s vision. The alternatives will presented at a public meeting this fall.”

Michael Ross, who is serving as a member of the Community Advisory Team, affirms that the group is acutely aware of the need for better housing, and which needs to be spread out so as to avoid the kind of overly dense neighborhoods like Sierra Drive.

“Providing discernible areas for a variety of housing types along the Highway 12 Corridor is going to be very important,” he says. “A diversity of different housing types is the key to this.”

The soon-to-be-completed 60-unit Fetters Apartments, adjacent to the charter school in Fetters Hot Springs, could be the right kind of solution toward easing the problem. Taken along with the soon-to-be-adjoining 40-unit Celestina Garden senior apartments, planned to begin construction later this year, the Fetters project is a highly visible sign that new workforce housing is not an impossible dream.

Now, suggests Ross, all that is needed is more of the same.

“I think the Fetters Apartments has started the discussion on how to create these kinds of housing opportunities and do it really well,” he says. “I think it’s a great first effort, and I’m hopeful that some of the lessons learned will help create even better types of housing using a similar model.”

That said, Ross predicts a trend toward compact living spaces designed to fit into the Valley’s numerous odd-sized and undersized nooks and crannies of available space.

“It can’t all be three-story, densely packed, multi-family apartments,” he says, “but also smaller in-fill projects, things like little bungalows and courtyard cottages and mini-houses. Some of these facilities may have to have very small units, but those can be extremely useful for seniors and singles.” Such projects will need to be funded by the private sector or by non-profits, he allows.

Meanwhile, he expects to see more and more vehicles parked along that wall, as the community finds creative ways to accommodate new folks in need of a roof over their head - and place to park their car.

Email David at david.templeton@sonomanews.com

SPOTLIGHT ON HOUSING

Has Sonoma Valley’s “housing crisis” reached a tipping point? Many think so and are calling for action. But action from whom, and action as to what?

In this second part of our four-part series focused on Sonoma Valley housing needs, Index-Tribune reporter David Templeton takes a look at workforce housing in the Springs – who is in need and how much is it going to cost them?

Look for upcoming parts in the series in the coming Fridays, with stories highlighting perspectives from the real-estate industry, and the difficulties of young Sonomans struggling to make a life for themselves in their own hometown.

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