City Hall is unanimous: Philadelphia has a housing affordability crisis. Yet for years, we have contributed to the problem by shortchanging communities out of affordable housing benefits they are entitled to by law. This has prevented families from accessing safe, stable, and affordable housing.
This year, Philadelphia voters have the power to end this injustice by voting yes on Ballot Question #2 on the May 20 primary election ballot.
Philadelphia’s Zoning Code allows developers to construct denser buildings without a zoning variance if they make a “payment in lieu of providing affordable housing” to the City of Philadelphia. By law, these “payments in lieu” are supposed to augment the City’s Housing Trust Fund, the primary municipal funding source for affordable housing programs and projects.
However, under multiple mayors, the City of Philadelphia has never added these development payments to the Housing Trust Fund. This means neighborhoods with over-scaled development aren’t receiving the affordable housing benefits they deserve, affordable housing programs citywide remain underfunded, and trust in the zoning process is eroding.
At our current pace, it will take over 200 years to build enough affordable housing. To solve our housing crisis, we must give our communities the resources they’re entitled to by law.
Let me give you an example. A new seven-story apartment building sticks out like a sore thumb on the 4900 block of Spruce Street. To build something this large without a zoning variance, the developers made a $1.3 million density bonus payment to the City of Philadelphia. Some neighbors were apprehensive about this project. These rental units cost much more than the typical West Philadelphian can afford and may further gentrify the area. But they recognize that over a million dollars’ worth of affordable housing resources is a fair tradeoff. So they swallowed their concerns and waited for the promised support.
Help never arrived. The developer paid, but rather than investing the money back into the community as promised, the City left the payment in the General Fund.
What happened in Garden Court is not the only example of promises made, promises broken. Across the city, developments generated $36 million in density bonus payments in just four years. If this money went into the Housing Trust Fund as promised, we could have helped an additional 1,800 families access affordable housing.
Vote “Yes” on Ballot Question #2
The community has the power to end this injustice. If a majority of Philadelphia voters vote yes on Ballot Question #2 on May 20, the City must put all developer “payments in lieu” into the Housing Trust Fund. City Council mandated that these density bonus payments must be spent within specific geographic boundaries, guaranteeing that if Ballot Question #2 is enacted, the neighborhoods seeing increased development will receive the affordable housing assistance they are entitled to.
The Housing Trust Fund has already made a sizable dent in our housing crisis. As of 2023, it empowered the City and partners to develop 3.4 million square feet of affordable housing for Philadelphia families. The Trust Fund also helped 80,251 families — 90 percent of whom live in low and moderate-income communities — stay in their homes and off the street. The Housing Trust Fund also saved taxpayers millions of dollars in shelter costs, meaning spending developer density bonus payments on affordable housing programs is both the right and financially responsible thing to do.
At our current pace, it will take over 200 years to build enough affordable housing. To solve our housing crisis, we must give our communities the resources they’re entitled to by law.
Help us achieve housing justice. Vote YES on Ballot Question #2 on May 20 to fully fund affordable housing for Philadelphia families.
The Citizen welcomes guest commentary from community members who represent that it is their own work and their own opinion based on true facts that they know firsthand.
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