Yes on 14-85

"As a middle school teacher in Hood River, I’ve seen firsthand how the housing market here has made it incredibly difficult for educators to live in the community they serve.

I bought my home in 2018 through a project designed to keep homes below market rate, with priority given to teachers, nurses, firefighters, and other essential workers. Without that opportunity, buying a home on a teacher’s salary simply wouldn’t have been possible for me in this market.

It shouldn’t take a special program for teachers, nurses, and other essential workers to be able to afford to live in the communities where they work. The housing bond is an opportunity to make that kind of stability accessible to more people, rather than something available only to those lucky enough to find a program like the one that helped me."

“My own life is richer when my neighbors are the teachers at the school up the street, the nurse and lab tech at the hospital a few blocks away, the produce guy at the grocery store, the stylist from the hair salon - the people who make Hood River the wonderful place it is.

I support the Housing Bond Issue so housing in Hood River is more accessible to all the folks with whom we weave this community. We need each other, we depend on each other, we appreciate each other. Somos juntos.”

“I was the founding Director of La Clinica del Cariño, working there for ten years (1985 -1995) to increase and improve the health care services available for farmworkers and other low-income community members. For 22 years (1990-2012), I was a Board member of HOPE (Housing for People, Inc.) a non-profit, community development corporation which obtained funding to create affordable housing in the Mid-Columbia. Currently, I am a Board member of the Hood River Valley Adult Center.

I am very concerned about the lack of affordable housing in our area for low-income folks, especially our 31+% population of Latino workers, families, and seniors. I know from personal friends and community contacts that many people are struggling with the lack of affordable housing. Latino elders often live with their adult children and take care of grandchildren. They depend on their working family members to assist them. This puts a financial burden on the whole family. Housing is often their primary expense.

We desperately need to address the problem of unaffordable housing for our brothers and sisters in Hood River. Let’s all support the Hood River affordable housing bond campaign.”

“It’s near impossible to survive in this town. I’ve lived in Hood River for twenty years now, I have worked both in the School District and in food service. Over the years, I’ve seen an alarming increase in rental costs and a dramatic decrease in rental availability. And with wages not matching the high cost of housing and the high cost of food and other necessities, it creates a stressful situation where folks have to decide between food and a roof over their heads, which eventually forces folks out of this town because they can’t afford to live here.”

"I was born and raised in Hood River County. I have experienced the need for housing and how difficult it is to find and then trying to afford to pay higher than normal rents is not a good feeling. My parents and siblings have had to relocate to be able to afford their own home. As a community organizer and someone who resources our immigrant community, not being able to give options about affordable housing is difficult. Seeing people live in uninhabitable conditions is very sad. Investing in housing for the members of our workforce is critical, we must secure stable, accessible housing. Please join me in voting Yes."