Letter to the Editor – Call to slow Commons housing decisions pending workforce data
Dear Editor,
I am writing this letter because I share the concern of other residents that the Town Council may not wait to receive all the data from an employee survey before setting direction and making decisions on the housing component of the Yountville Commons project. This data is critical to guide the decisions on unit mix, i.e. studios, one bedroom, two bedroom etc. I have attended many meetings and read written public comments and I am not hearing that we shouldn’t move forward with the project but rather to slow down or wait to receive the important data that will help shape the housing component of the Yountville Commons project to be successful.
Making a rushed decision could put the town in the same predicament as Napa Valley College when they invested approximately $114 million on the River Trail Village. This on-campus housing complex opened in 2024 and suffered low occupancy rates – 33% to 49%. The reasons are what you would expect, high initial rent costs, mismanagement and marketing failures and failure to understand the demographics of their target population for housing.
At the Feb. 17 Regular Study Session meeting, John Ferons reported that they will use a Design-Build entity (DBE) for the build out of the project. The advantages he cited include:
Singular accountability
Faster delivery
Fewer change orders
Innovation
There may be singular accountability with a DBE but you are still dealing with two different entities (construction/build and designer) who may or may not work well together, which would lead to slow delivery and increased number of change orders that translates to increased costs.
The financing is also a big concern for me. I think the questions we need to ask ourselves as town residents are:
How much subsidy should we provide?
How much long-term debt do we, town residents, feel comfortable carrying?
How do we balance housing and community goals with fiscal sustainability?
Lastly, I would like to see the town invest in an analysis on ground leasing the housing and commercial/civic space components to see if there is a way to bring in a funding stream to minimize debt financing.
Thank you,
Majel Arnold
Sponsored
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