Former NHT chairman wants inequalities in accessing affordable housing addressed

 

Former Chairman of the National Housing Trust (NHT), Howard Mitchell, says there is an urgent need to address inequalities in accessing affordable housing in Jamaica.

 

His comments are in relation to a special report carried by Radio Jamaica News on Monday about young professionals struggling to purchase a house in Kingston due to the high cost.

 

Speaking Wednesday on the Morning Agenda on Power 106FM, Mr. Mitchell said it would not be inappropriate to ask the NHT to dedicate all its low income mortgage facilities to a particular segment of the population for the next five to seven years until the inequality is addressed.    

 

At the same time, Mr. Mitchell is calling for an overarching policy to deal with the issue of affordable housing for young professionals and "young people generally, having a place, not necessarily to own, but that they have security of tenure". 

 

"We need a housing policy that covers that, and I'm not aware that we really have that in a consistent way. And that housing policy also has to be tied to an effective transportation system, because I don't think there's any question that there is very little land left in Kingston that you could afford to dedicate to low-income housing," he reasoned. 

 

Mr. Mitchell said Jamaica's zoning laws, which refer to regulations governing how land can be used in different areas, are also outdated.

 

He described urban planning in Jamaica, in particular for the capital city - Kingston, as anachronistic. 

 

"What we should be doing with Kingston, which is a modern metropolis by any standard, is looking, as you say, to zone not only areas, but areas within the areas, to direct development in a particular way. Because otherwise, you get a situation like what has happened on Lady Musgrave, where Lady Musgrave was a residential road. But over time, you have had big money come in, put in commercial applications, getting the covenants changed, and building massive commercial development." 

 

Mr. Mitchell explained that if the zoning laws are not amended, this could contribute to a widening of the inequality gap.

 

"One, it gives the residential homeowner a massive uptick in his value if he wants to sell. But if he doesn't want to sell, or if somebody wants to develop residential housing, there is an inequality between the competition that government, by its nature, should try to address, if you want a society that is based on equality and equality of opportunity. So we have to look at those things in a comprehensive way, and we're not doing it," he stressed.