Dear Neighbors:
After having a July for the ages, the Red Sox could not make it to October. Here’s hoping their midsummer success provides a foundation for a better 2027 season. In the meantime, in this week’s letter I will begin my discussion of November’s ballot questions with a focus on two of them (Question 2 and Question 6) that request bond funding for housing development.
The Secretary of State is mailing us a Voter Information Handbook that includes at pages 8-15 a summary of Questions 1 through 5 on the November ballot, which are also summarized in this Providence Eye article. That article also includes a summary of Questions 6 and 7, which will appear on our Providence ballot only. In this letter, I will discuss Question 2 (statewide $120 million housing bond) and Question 6 ($25 million Providence only housing bond).
A. Question 2 (the State’s $120 million housing bond)
Question 2 seeks voter approval to issue a $120 million bond for housing development. If approved, up to $25 million of the bond’s proceeds would be allocated towards producing housing for home ownership, while up to $10 million would be allocated to establish a “public developer.”
Beginning in the Great Depression, governments built and ran public housing, often in the form of large apartment blocks dedicated to low-income tenants. Over time, however, these projects often failed, due to flight to the suburbs, poor maintenance and crime, among other reasons. Governments moved to subsidizing affordable housing built by private companies that receive government subsidies and tax incentives in return for deed restrictions concerning the amount of rent charged. In 2021, Maryland’s Montgomery County established a Housing Production Fund, a revolving loan fund that makes short-term construction loans for new housing projects developed by the Housing Opportunities Commission, the county’s public housing authority (PHA). These loans take the place of private equity and lower the cost of financing. If approved, Question 2 would provide initial capital to bring a public developer model to Rhode Island.
Earlier this year, the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council (RIPEC) published a Report that raises questions about the efficiency of the State’s affordable housing program, concluding that the State’s program in recent years had cost more than $500,000 affordable housing unit developed, of which slightly over half was a public subsidy. Given the need to build thousands of affordable housing units, this cost level is not sustainable.
Fortunately, there are ways to reduce the cost of affordable housing production in addition to using the “public developer” model. For example, some communities have opted for modular construction, rather than “stick built,” realizing reductions in construction costs, construction time and environmental impact.
B. Question 6 (Providence $25 million housing bond)
Question 6 seeks voter approval for a $25 million bond to replenish the Providence Housing Trust Fund, which is administered by the Providence Redevelopment Agency (PRA). As described in its FY 2026 Housing Report, the City “braids” (combines) PRA funding with federal funding sources to produce new housing stock, preserve existing housing and stabilize existing housing arrangements through rental support, legal services and other means. The Housing Report provides examples of recent projects, in which roughly $20,000-$30,000 of PRA funding supported the development of each unit of affordable housing.
I will be voting “Yes” for both bonds, with the understanding that our State program needs to find cost savings.