It’s affordable and safe with a good education system
A Boston Globe article entitled “Miracle on the Mystic: Chelsea, Everett, and the New American Dream” published in October 2019, discussed the findings of an academic study by economists at Harvard University, Brown University and the U.S. Census Bureau. It found that where you grow up can have a profound impact on your ability to realize a piece of the American Dream. For example, the article stated, “Latinas who grew up in Everett have higher household incomes as adults than about 80 percent of Latinas from elsewhere in the country and 90 percent of Latinas in the region.”
Researchers call places like Everett ‘opportunity bargains’ than can change the trajectory of poor children’s lives. ‘Opportunity bargain’ neighborhoods are those with rents below the median for the area and outcomes that are above the median for children. Moreover, they found that affordable and safe communities with good education systems seem to be the key for these high-opportunity neighborhoods.
In an effort to maintain the city’s affordability and quality of life, Mayor Carlo DeMaria has facilitated the construction of thousands of new housing units. For instance, over the last two years there have been over 5,000 new units approved or proposed in the city with over 600 of them deed-restricted as affordable. Of those, nearly 4,500 units have already been approved including more than 500 affordable units.
All projects in the city are subject to a 10-15% Inclusionary Zoning provision that designates the percentage of affordable units in each development. They are also subject to Linkage Fees which is based on $1,000 per unit of housing and $1-$3 per square foot of commercial/industrial space. These funds are then dedicated to expanding the city’s affordable housing stock.
