Finding affordable housing is a growing problem in Bloomington Normal. Laura Furlong is the CEO of MarcFirst and a member of a study panel on the issue for the League of Women Voters.
A McLean County League of Women Voters study suggests home ownership is declining and the amount of money people pay for rent is more stressful now than it was fifteen years ago. There has been an 18% increase in the share of income needed to afford a three bedroom apartment over the last fifteen years.
Furlong says the number of people on a waiting list for subsidized public housing has growing by 314% in the same period in the twin cities.
The number of families on the wait list for public housing rose from 22 to 91 over the span. She says the number of individual people on the section eight vouchers wait list went from 387 to 412 over the period.
Furlong says the community has not addressed the entire scope of affordable housing, though pockets of need are receiving service, for instance services for developmental disabilities and the current discussion about mental health needs
The League of Women Voters is presenting its study and potential recommendations Tuesday evening at the Normal Public Library (7p).
