​𝗪𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲.

This is my second post related to the 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝐻𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑡 𝑆𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑁𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑠 𝐴𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑦𝑠𝑖𝑠 from February 13, 2020. The report compared the cost of homeownership across similar communities, though I wish it had included a broader set of comparison cities.

Annual housing costs include major expenses such as mortgage payments and real estate taxes, as well as essential recurring costs like insurance and utilities. The report predates the streetlight fee, an expense I suspect will prove “sticky” and unlikely to disappear.

Living in Shorewood means appreciating what the community offers. The school district is often cited as the primary reason people move here, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗮 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲. I imagine it accounts for a significant portion of the premium we pay to reside in this village.

For all of us, that premium can feel like a way of giving back to a system that benefited our families in the past. For others, it acknowledges the value of strong public education for a healthy society. 𝗪𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲. A notable portion of our property taxes also supports Milwaukee County, particularly the Department of Health and Human Services, which plays a key role in providing subsidized housing outside the City of Milwaukee.

Most of us can accept paying this premium when we trust that higher taxes only occur after all practical alternatives are exhausted. But we should not be asked to subsidize additional housing when 𝟵𝟯% 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲.

I hope our village trustees recognize that conditions have changed since the report was issued, when the local economic outlook was far more uncertain than it is today. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆.

There is strength in numbers. I encourage you to ask neighbors to sign up for updates at http://affordableshorewood.org...