Philly City Council vote unlocks $800M for housing, shifting more aid to lowest-income residents

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For the second and final time, City Council has approved a bill authorizing the city to borrow $800 million for Mayor Cherelle Parker’s signature housing plan, capping a protracted legislative process that saw lawmakers publicly spar with her administration.

Council on Thursday unanimously passed an amended version of the measure — the centerpiece of the Housing Opportunities Made Easy initiative — during the body’s first meeting of the new session.

The bill was the last legislative hurdle before borrowing could start for the $2 billion plan, commonly referred to as H.O.M.E. The multifaceted initiative is rooted in creating and preserving 30,000 housing units.

Council President Kenyatta Johnson called it a “win-win” for city residents.

“At the end of the day, it’s about making sure individuals become first-time homebuyers, making sure individuals have a chance to have their home prepared and making sure we address the issue of homelessness,” Johnson said.

Parker signed the legislation during a ceremony Thursday afternoon.

Coming together ‘with urgency and purpose’

In December, Council approved the first annual budget for the H.O.M.E. plan.

The measure calls for $277 million in spending for more than two dozen programs for renters and homeowners, many of which already exist.

The vote came amid intense pressure from the Parker administration, which strongly opposed changes made to the measure to prioritize Philadelphia’s lowest-income households. It also triggered changes to the bond bill first passed in June, requiring Council to pass the amended legislation before the funding for the plan could be unlocked.

It’s unclear when the funding will start flowing.

The updated budget measure is considered a major win for progressives. It includes increased funding for affordable housing preservation and production, a popular home repair program, and an effort to help tenants facing eviction and homelessness.

The resolution also changed how funding will be allocated for two of the city’s most in-demand housing programs.

“The final H.O.M.E. Year One Budget represents what’s possible when lawmakers, housing experts, and community advocates come together with urgency and purpose,” Councilmembers Jaime Gauthier and Rue Landau, chair and vice-chair of Council’s housing committee, wrote in a joint statement.

Under the legislation, 90% of funding for the Basic Systems Repair Program and the Adaptive Modifications Program will go to households earning up to 60% of area median income, or about $71,640 annually for a family of four. The data point includes some areas of the Philly suburbs, South Jersey and Maryland.

The remaining 10% will go toward households earning between 60% and 100% of the area median income, or annual incomes between about $71,640 and $119,400 for a family of four.

In the months before the vote, lawmakers had clashed with the mayor’s administration over those details, including a war of words between Parker and Johnson. The mayor and her administration also actively lobbied lawmakers in hopes of changing the outcome. And Parker took her message on the road, spending hours one Sunday pushing her vision for H.O.M.E. at nearly a dozen churches in the city.

Since the start, the administration has been adamant that the mayor’s plan serves everyone who needs help with housing — from low-income renters to middle-income homeowners. And she vowed to never engage in policymaking that pits the “have-nots against those who have just a little.”

However, lawmakers, particularly Council’s progressive bloc, have argued the city has a duty to help its most vulnerable households first.