Some Question Whether Towns Will Be Ready For Community Housing Fund Votes In November

Few would deny that the lack of affordable housing on the East End has reached the crisis point, and few would disagree that the creation of community housing funds in each of the five East End towns would provide enough money to put a serious dent in the problem.

But some onlookers are quietly expressing concern that with Election Day only seven months away, towns will not have enough time to undertake the extensive voter education effort they think will be required to muster enough support to pass a new 0.5 percent tax on most real estate transactions. The possibility of delaying a vote till 2023 was raised at a recent East End Supervisors and Mayors Association meeting.

At stake is millions of dollars in potential tax revenue for the towns that could be left on the table if they delay a vote — or, worse, if a referendum is rejected by voters who are already angry about inflation and the lingering pandemic, among other things.

Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said he, for one, wants to move forward quickly.

“I plan on supporting putting this on the ballot this year,” he said. “I believe this is a crisis, and we need every tool we can get our hands on.”

But Schneiderman was quick to add, “It doesn’t make much sense to put it on the ballot unless there is a strong public service campaign.”

While towns can alert voters to the fact that a referendum will be held, they cannot urge voters to support the measure. But that is something groups like East End YIMBY, which stands for “Yes In My Backyard,” can do. Michael Daly, a founder of the organization, which advocates for more workforce housing, said East End YIMBY was already “playing a role in building support for community housing, and we are encouraging the town boards in each of the five East End towns to prepare for that referendum.”

Daly said the notion of creating a small tax that would be tacked on the 2 percent Community Preservation Fund tax, with all of its revenue earmarked for affordable housing measures, “seems like a very sensible approach to us. However, there may be some pushback from people who are against raising taxes in general. The challenge is to educate people about the facts and not just allow the hearsay to travel around.”

Schneiderman said that while he expected groups like East End YIMBY to support the creation of a Community Housing Fund, he questioned whether there would be the kind of widespread support that was built up over the years leading to the passage of the CPF in 1998. “People who support open space might support housing, but they might not,” he said.

East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc said he was more optimistic the measure would pass, at least in his town. “Anytime I’m in public talking to anyone, the affordable housing crisis always comes into the discussion,” he said. “It’s literally gotten to the point that if you are a working person, blue collar or a white collar professional, you can’t afford to live here anymore.”

Van Scoyoc said the town would press ahead with plans to craft a housing plan and be ready for a vote in November. “We don’t really think we can wait,” he said. “The need is too dire.”

Van Scoyoc said that if former Governor Andrew Cuomo had not vetoed similar legislation in 2019, East Hampton would have had at least $6 million dedicated for affordable housing.

Officials in Riverhead and Southold could not be reached for comment, but Stephen Kiely, the Shelter Island Town attorney, said Shelter Island was also planning to hold a referendum this November.

He said the Town Board planned to hold a work session next week with its community housing advisory board, a panel that was created to formulate a housing plan, to discuss what steps must be taken to get the measure ready for a vote. In addition, he said the town would hire a consultant to help finalize its housing plan.

“The plan is important,” he said, “because voters will have some idea of what the town’s intentions are.”

The mood is cautiously optimistic on Shelter Island, he added. “There is a segment of the population that is concerned about the increase in density and what it would look like,” he said, “but the bulk of islanders want community housing.”

State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., who sponsored the legislation enabling towns to creating housing funds, urged caution. “A referendum on a community housing fund is not a referendum that will pass all by itself without anyone doing anything,” he said.

Thiele said he saw the housing plan each town must implement explaining how it plans to spend the money as critical. “There has to be robust public participation in the creation of that plan,” he said. “I think that process takes time. It’s not just about developing a plan in the planning department. There has to be a lot of public outreach.”

Thiele said some towns might opt to delay a vote until they get all their ducks in a row. “There is a cost of waiting,” he said. “The towns have to balance the need for the fund and the crisis we are in, which gets worse with each passing day. But if you put it up for a vote, you have to do it right.”

Kevin McDonald, a veteran East End environmentalist and civic activist, who played a major role in helping gain support for the CPF, said he, too, was concerned that the towns were assuming it would be easy to gain voters’ support.

“That the need is overwhelming is obvious,” he said “And public support for the fund would be a game-changer for every town across the East End.”

But he said towns need to remember that even with a history of support for open space purchases, it took over a decade of hard work to get the Peconic Bay Community Preservation Fund on the ballot and approved by voters.

“Local government officials need to fully grasp that it is going to take the same level of effort to demonstrate how the fund will be used,” he said, “how it would solve problems critical to the whole community.

“If that is not done, and the sentiment is, ‘We’re really smart. We’ve got this all figured out. Trust us,’” he continued, “there could be a problem.”

He said towns might be well-advised to delay a vote.

“I would hate to see this measure not succeed,” he said. “Maybe going a little slow and taking the time to get it right is the strategic move.”