To spur more affordable housing in #MiddletownRI, Town Council President Paul Rodrigues and Councilor Christopher Logan suggest a new tax break for second homeowners. Before it takes effect, the proposal must be approved by legal counsel and the council.
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CONTACT: Matt Sheley at (401) 842-6543 or msheley@middletownri.com
ANOTHER APPROACH TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING
MIDDLETOWN, R.I. (SEPTEMBER 3, 2024) – The Town Council wants to take another tact to add affordable housing in Middletown.
At a meeting Tuesday night in Town Hall, council President Paul M. Rodrigues and Councilor Christopher Logan spearheaded a proposal to cut the taxes for landowners who rent second properties in town on a long-term basis.
As part of the plan, such individuals would see their second properties taxed under the town’s resident rate. The move, they said, would provide financial incentives to create more year round rentals and affordable housing opportunities.
Town Solicitor Peter B. Regan was asked to prepare an ordinance on the issue before it comes back to the council for review and consideration at a future meeting.
Noting that the neighboring City of Newport has a similar program in place, Rodrigues said it was time to try to start doing things a little differently, as much as possible.
“This can help people and it makes sense,” Rodrigues said. “It may encourage more year round rentals.”
Logan said the proposal wasn’t the lone solution to the town’s affordable housing situation, but it should be a start.
"This isn’t going to solve the problem, but one of the tools we can put in our tool belt…” Logan said. “We have to find a way so it doesn’t impact those year round rentals.”
The council also approved a request from Councilor Barbara VonVillas to have a presentation by Stantec CommunityScale about housing data in Middletown at an upcoming meeting. VonVillas said the goal would be to better inform residents about what’s happening with the housing market and why.
In an attempt to help make Middletown more affordable, the council approved a split residential tax rate in 2021.
Under the initiative — known as the “Tiered Residential Tax Program — locals who live full time in Middletown and are registered voters are taxed the “Residential” rate. All others are taxed the “Nonresident” rate.
Town Administrator Shawn J. Brown said applications for the TRTP are still being accepted with the town’s tax office now. Drop by Town Hall during normal business hours, call 401-847-0193 or visit https://mdl.town/TRTP online.
To date, close to 3,000 property owners receive the TRTP tax break out of more than 5,100 eligible properties in town.
The benefit from the TRTP is very real. For example, the residential tax rate for Fiscal 2025 is $8.66 per $1,000 of assessed property value, with the nonresident rate at $11.26 per $1,000. In actual dollars, that can mean a difference of thousands in taxes for those who are eligible, depending on the property and assessment.
Housing affordability has evolved into one of the most pressing issues facing Middletown — and communities across the country.
According to recent figures from the Housing Works RI report, there are 7,217 housing units in Middletown. Of those, 56 percent are owner occupied, with the remainder rented out.
The data showed of the owner occupied units, 33 percent were considered “burdened,” meaning they pay more than 30 percent of their gross pay towards housing. Those figures increased to 41 percent for those who rented.
In response, council members and town officials have pledged to focus on ways to make the community more affordable.
That’s included everything from holding the line on spending in the Fiscal 2025 budget to pursuing affordable housing projects and other measures.
Previously, the Planning Board gave its blessing to a master plan proposal to bring a total of
57 affordable housing units to 26 Oliphant Lane and 650 Green End Ave. The town is also working on plans to bring affordable housing to property across East Main Road from Town Hall.
Town officials have said the way those developments are structured, they won’t cost Middletown property owners a dime in local tax dollars.
Unfortunately, with all the competition across the state for dollars to assist with affordable housing, the town learned recently it wasn’t in line to receive any assistance for the Oliphant and Green End Avenue projects largely because they didn’t provide enough units or density to be worthwhile.
Since then, town officials have talked about regrouping with the affordable housing efforts and trying to find new ways to move forward.
All told, there are about 500 new units of housing approved or on the boards in Middletown, projects intended to increase the number of places for people to live. Among the most significant are the Middletown Center project at 600-740 West Main Road and the Rosebrook Commons development at 1747 West Main Road.
Document Link: https://mdl.town/Break