Alexandria Democratic leaders met today on a Zoom call to discuss proposals from Vice President Kamala Harris to address the housing crisis.
A lack of housing, particularly affordable housing, has been a major talking point in Alexandria for years. Last year, the City Council approved a suite of new zoning changes aimed at creating new housing, though those changes are still in a lengthy court battle.
A handful of journalists were on the call, arranged by local Democrats, to discuss the proposals with elected officials. The call featured Rep. Don Beyer, Del. Charniele Herring, Del. Alfonso Lopez, and City Council member John Chapman.
During the call, Beyer outlined the key points of the plan, namely:
- A $25,000 down payment for first-time home buyers. “We all know the best way to build a nest egg for our later years is to buy a home,” Beyer said, “but the hardest part is getting started.”
- Taking on corporate landlords. Beyer said Northern Virginia in particular has seen troubles with private corporate entities snatching up homes to lease them out, driving up the housing prices.
- Use tax incentives to spur construction of millions of new homes. “We have a huge housing demand, but the supply isn’t there,” said Beyer. “After WWII, it was an explosion of starter homes that GIs were able to buy that gave home ownership its start that made 50s and 60s so strong. Right now, builders are building the most expensive homes they can to maximize profit. We need to get start homes back in play.”
Harris’ plan has already faced blowback from rival Donald Trump’s campaign. Associated Press reported that Trump said at a rally that Harris “has no clue how she’d pay for $25,000 to every first-time homebuyer, including illegals.”
Chapman discussed how the need for more housing in Alexandria.
“We’ve seen [Trump] doesn’t believe the housing crisis is a real priority,” said Chapman. “I know personally the effect of generational wealth passed down along from family to family when home ownership becomes a priority. We need federal partners, in particular folks in the White House, folks like Harris and Walz who are making this a priority.”
Chapman said Harris’ proposals gives Alexandria more tools in its toolbelt to encourage affordable housing construction, particularly the tax incentives to build more moderately priced housing as compared to the luxury apartments and condominiums that typically dominate construction around Northern Virginia.
Chapman said the proposals align with requests from both the City of Alexandria and Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
“It puts money on the table,” Chapman said. “One of the big challenges… is zoning policy vs resources. How do you look at the resources and make sure the supply coming in is not just affordable, but attainable.”
Lopez pointed to the Serrano saga in Arlington as a sign for a need for greater housing regulation.
“We had the Serrano,” Lopez said. “We had substandard housing issues. We had substandard, slumlord conditions. If that’s happening in our County, just imagine what’s happening across the country.”
While the local leaders expressed hope for the housing reforms if Harris is elected, Beyer also said, realistically, very little of that might come to pass if Democrats don’t control the legislature.
“I wish I could say it [wouldn’t be] dead on arrival, but if Mike Johnson is still speaker, I’m not optimistic,” Beyer said.
