Enlarge A member of Homeless Helping Homeless asks the panel a question

Posted: June 25th, 2010 Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman

Nearly 100 community members gathered at a church in Ballantyne on Thursday to talk about the fears, facts and future of affordable housing developments.

Sharon Doerer, who was in the audience at Harrison United Methodist Church, says she and her family moved to the Ballantyne area in search of better schools after living in west Charlotte for 14 years.

Doerer, an organizational science doctoral student at UNC Charlotte, was curious to see how the moderators and panel would frame the discussion.

Panelists Debra Campbell, director of Charoltte-Mecklenburg's Planning Department; Ned Curran, president of The Bissell Companies; Rodney Sadler, professor at Union Seminary kicked off the meeting by sharing their personal beliefs about affordable housing.

If a person works as hard as they can to take care of themselves, Campbell says, then others should chip in if that person is still unable to meet their own needs.

Curran says many of his employees are the very people who would qualify and benefit from affordable housing opportunities adding, "if we're not looking after each other, then we're not a balanced community."

"The people we are talking about living in affordable housing aren't 'them', they are 'us,' " says Sadler. Throughout the evening he repeated that thought, suggesting many may only be a missed paycheck away from needing affordable housing.

City Council member Warren Cooksey, one of the moderators, says recent debates before the council made it clear there is a lot of misunderstanding surrounding the issue.

Once the audience broke into small groups for discussions, it became clear Cooksey is correct that there is a lot of confusion around the issue.

Organizers provide a list of common housing terms with brief definitions: affordable housing, assisted housing, workforce housing, Section 8 housing, gap financing, area median income, single room occupancy and housing locational policy.

The explanations didn't clarify how different types of housing and financing are funded -- or that every development may be funded differently. Neither did the definitions paint a picture of the individual or family who would qualify. Nor did it explain the rigorous application process to even be considered as residents.

Within the small groups, a University City resident complained that the media and the panel weren't explaining funding. He also worries that people will be placed in the developments without a support system to help them integrate into the larger community.

Ray Eschert of Ballantyne reminded the group that the pictures we have in our minds about affordable housing in other cities probably don't accurately reflect what's being discussed here.

Doerer told the group that they might be surprised to learn that they probably already know people who would apply for housing assistance, whatever its form. She also says no one should assume people who need a boost are making poor financial decisions or that they're criminals.

The panel mirrored her sentiment. Each pointed out that the application process for affordable housing is likely more strenuous than what homeowners experienced.

Doerer says that even though none of the major issues were resolved at the forum, she has a better understanding of the details. "I think they did a good job laying out the facts," she says.

She thinks affordable housing projects in south Charlotte are inevitable. She says the "Can We Talk?" meetings foster opinion leaders and voices of reason within the community who can spread facts, not gossip or fear.

When asked if she is willing to be an opinion leader, Doerer says, "If I have the opportunity, I will."

The next Can we talk about affordable housing? event is Wednesday, June 30, at 7 p.m. at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 1000 E. Morehead St.

The event was sponsored by the Community Building Initative, Mecklenburg Ministries and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee.

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