At a press conference Wednesday at Livingston Condominiums, 808 Williamson St., Mayor Dave Cieslewicz announced all six of the Inclusionary Zoning units within the complex have sold out.
The acceptance of the offers on the units is positive news for the mayor's embattled plan to provide lower-cost housing in the city of Madison.
'Housing affordibility is a huge issue in the city, and Inclusionary Zoning is one of the ways that we can address that problem,' said Cieslewicz spokesperson George Twigg. 'One of the first developments where the Inclusionary Zoning is actually being built has been completely sold out, and that is obviously good news.'
The ordinance is designed to create neighborhoods of mixed social and economic backgrounds from downtown to the city's periphery. New housing developments are required to set aside 15 percent of the units to be made affordable to the working poor and people of average means.
While the ordinance has had some success, critics argue that it does not do enough to help those who cannot afford housing.
'They're not affordable to the people we want to help,' said Phil Salkin of the Realtor's Association of South Central Wisconsin. 'What about a person who makes $15 an hour; that's $30,000 a year? These aren't people who are starving, but they won't be able to buy these inclusionary zoning houses.'
The realtor's association has advocated repeal of IZ in recent months but, according to Salkin, is now willing to work with the city in improving the existing law. However, Salkin said, if a reworked IZ is unacceptable to the realtors association, it will return to advocating repeal.
Proponents of the ordinance have stressed that, of the many available programs intended to help make housing more affordable, IZ is specifically designed to benefit the working lower-middle class.
Nonetheless, supporters such as Ald. Austin King, District 8, have acknowledged that the program has not performed perfectly as it is and that certain amendments are needed to help make it more effective.
'Inclusionary zoning needs improvement, and many of us are dedicated to seeing that happen,' King said. 'I think we've put forward a very good reform package.'
Proposed changes have met with early approval at the city's housing committee. They include allowing owners to resell IZ houses at reasonable values and encouraging developers to participate in the program by providing more opportunities for them to make money.
King said IZ is vital to breaking down economic barriers in Madison.
'The most poignant and important purpose of inclusionary zoning is creating those kind of stable, mixed-income neighborhoods,' King said.
