Longmont City Council candidates were asked to answer a survey on affordable housing by the East County Housing Opportunity Coalition, or ECHO, — a nonprofit organization that educates, informs and trains East Boulder County residents about local affordable housing needs, according to the website.
On the site for the survey, ECHO announced that any candidates not represented did not return the questionnaire.
The following are the answers provided by each candidate along with the questions asked. To keep each entry short the responses are broken up by candidate through a series that will be published throughout the week.
Jeremy Dejuan Johnson
1. What is your 10 year vision for affordable housing in Longmont?
My idea is simple on the affordable home goal for Longmont. I would love for Longmont to look at the tiny home that the VA has done for the homeless vets. That would be a sustainable community that could provide a lot of resources for everyone
2. Longmont has a goal of achieving 12% affordable housing by 2035. Is this the right goal? What concrete proposals would you add to city policies to meet or exceed that goal?
That goal is a very reachable goal, but the goal has to have a way for those people that will be living in those homes jobs so if you try to reach that goal you have to be able to provide jobs for the people
5. What does smart growth mean to you, and how would you ensure that all new developments are “smart”?
Smart growth means to Is growing so that everyone is triving in the community not just one group
6. What do you understand about the history of racism that has led to People of Color owning less property, and thus having less wealth than white people?
I am biracial my mom is black and dad is white. So I will not support that statement without solid data from a trusted and vetted source .
7. What policies would you actively support to make up for years of racism in housing policy?
Facts or better than policies, if there is an issue with the above then we as a community need to start having home ownership workshops.
8. Do you see a role for the City in limiting vacation rentals and investor-owned property as a way of keeping housing costs down? Please explain.
I don’t see that be a way to keep housing cost down or up. That is another way to generate more income for the city. If you limit those or put all kinds of sanctions on those homes that will increase the rates and lower the inventory . Also if there isn’t enough inventory then city will lose tax revenue from travelers
9. Would you support changing height restrictions to create more affordable housing? ____yes __x__no. Explain.
That would impeded on the view of the front range mountains.
11. Would you support changing single-family zoning to allow for more homes? __X__ yes ____no. What commitment would you make to ensuring this happens, and in what time frame?
Work on programs that would release funds to purchase land for those reasons .
12. Would you take a leadership role in persuading council to use American Rescue Plan Act dollars to land bank, or help mobile home park renters purchase their homes? __x___ yes ____no
13. Would you support procurement policies in housing that create a preference system for minority and disadvantaged businesses? ___x__ yes ____no.
14. Would you take a leadership role on this? _x_yes __ no
15. Should our city create an eviction legal defense program like the one in place in Boulder? __x__ yes _____no
