When developers promise “affordable units”, they mean housing priced for people earning close to the area median income (AMI). This is set by HUD for a 4-person household at $90,5000 for the Winchester Metro Area, which includes Frederick County.
It’s a figure well above the median income for Winchester City residents, which is $64,655 across all household sizes.
More than half of Winchester residents rent, and their AMI is closer to $52,000. The average rent in Winchester is around $1,300 a month. That average continues to rise. Virginia is a Dillon-law state, so localities are forced to rely on “market-driven solutions.”
Unfortunately for those of us who are from Winchester, that math doesn’t add up. Especially for the people doing the important and necessary work of preparing food, cleaning buildings, caring for kids, and other service-based jobs in our city.
So-called affordable units are out of reach for those Winchester workers who need it most: minimum wage workers, service workers, and the families holding this city together.
Housing for the People Who Live in Winchester
My Approach
I am proposing a solution: Community Land Trusts (CLTs)— land taken permanently off the speculative market, where homes and rentals stay affordable for generations.
I will fight for Winchester to be the first city in the Shenandoah Valley to establish a CLT: a model that stays, grows, and belongs to the community – allowing ownership and stewardship.
There are several CLTs in Virginia, and over 250 CLTs operating across the United States today.