Issue Position: Safe and Affordable Housing

Issue Position

All our neighbors deserve a safe, healthy, and affordable home. Unfortunately, the costs of rent and housing continue to increase across our communities. Throughout our neighborhood, I have spoken to families who are concerned about being displaced from their homes because of the growing costs.

This is a common trend as more than 35% of RI households are considered "housing cost-burdened" (this means they are spending more than one-third of their income on housing).

Housing affects all aspects of one's life and our lack of affordable housing is an issue we must urgently address. I believe everyone deserves to live in a safe home they can afford.

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As your State Representative, I will unapologetically advocate for:

Prioritizing Housing in the State Budget

We are experiencing an urgent housing shortage and it is only going to get worse. The supply of housing is not keeping up with the demand and housing costs are outpacing wages. Unfortunately, we do not have a regular funding stream for housing (despite having the money to do so). Budget after budget, housing does not receive the investment it desperately needs.
It is time we treat housing as a priority and provide it with a permanent/reliable funding stream! Therefore, I am going to fight for investments towards:
- The construction and preservation of Affordable Housing + Senior Housing
- Housing-related resources for Providence and other municipalities
- "Transitional Housing" for domestic violence victims, aging foster youth, and our homeless community

Ending Source of Income Discrimination

I do not believe it should be legal for someone to be discriminated from renting property because of their source of income. With the exception of Rhode Island, all New England states have laws that protect people against housing discrimination.
We need to prohibit the practice of housing discrimination on the basis of one's income source, whether it is: social security, alimony, and/or public-assistance programs. This will ensure our communities are not being segregated and provide all people with a fair opportunity to pursue housing.

Restoring Vacant Homes in our Neighborhood

Across Providence and in our neighborhood, there are plenty of vacant and empty homes due to foreclosures. These vacant and empty properties negatively impact our quality of life through hurting nearby property values, fueling illegal activity, and being an eye-sore.
Often times, these empty homes are owned by wealthy investors and large institutions (e.g., Bank of America) who have no plans to restore these properties. Instead, they are waiting for the opportunity to sell it and maximize their profit, even if it takes years.

We have to hold these investors accountable and demand that they either: restore the property for housing purposes, pay an annual "empty homes tax", or sell it to the state so it can be restored.

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