Residents tackle housing

Group meets with Zoning Board

By Erick Slattery | Manor Ink

Livingston Manor, NY – Affordable housing is an important issue anywhere you go. People struggle with finding housing that accommodates their income levels. For people wanting to enjoy the beauty of the Catskill Mountains, finding an affordable house, or even a reasonable rental, has become an incredibly challenging task for many. The Town of Rockland, however, has begun working to understand the community’s housing requirements and the challenges residents face, especially in downtown Livingston Manor and the immediate surroundings.

The town’s current building moratorium, which is being extended through April 2025, allows time to review and redress some of the challenges. On Oct. 29, the town’s Zoning Board co-sponsored an initial community meeting, hosted by the Livingston Manor Library at the Eastern Star building, on the topic of affordable housing to gather insights and experiences from residents. It was a lively event with multiple issues identified and ideas suggested for the Zoning Board’s review.

Rentals no longer reasonable

The first thing to understand is the word “affordable.” The word means “reasonably priced.” Expenses are not reasonable if housing costs more than one-third of a household’s income.

Rentals in Livingston Manor typically cost around $1,800, which is far above the $800 suggestion for affordability, based on the area’s median income of $67,000. This is a serious problem, especially for the people who have lived in the county since they were children and now are struggling to afford their homes.

Gwen Schantz, co-founder of Brooklyn Grange and a designer of green spaces, is also a volunteer advising the Zoning Board. Schantz is adamant about increasing awareness of affordable housing issues.

“I’m personally drawn to this idea of taking the profit incentive out of the real estate market and housing industry, where it’s not working and can’t work to increase more affordable housing options,” she said. “I’ve heard a lot about how local residents who work in our town’s restaurants and businesses can’t afford to even live here.”

Schantz understands these problems and recommends several ways to adjust the zoning regulations to ease burdens on developers, but also to encourage affordable housing development, perhaps through a nonprofit organization. She recommends locations for possible new buildings that are outside the flood plain and are also in walkable distance to town. Funding is a severely crucial part in getting all of these promising plans put into action and making sure they meet the best standards.

“We have a lot of structures in town that are considered substandard in terms of the way they’re maintained,” Schantz said.

Addressing challenges ahead

Finally, one of the most important tasks to accomplish is to get people involved and excited about helping to make change in their community. Especially needed is educating people on the problems in the overall local economy, not just with housing. Schantz hopes this housing project will start to move along further in mid-to-late 2025.

Focusing on these changes is very important for the future of Livingston Manor, not just for individual people and families. Schantz emphasized that residents need affordable and attainable housing for the workforce, and that extends to people who work in the school and who volunteer for our local fire, ambulance and EMS services. “We rely on them to make our town function.”

The Town of Rockland Zoning Board will take up affordable housing again at its upcoming meeting later this month. The public is invited to attend.