52nd District Congressman Scott Peters called local housing, transportation and environmental leaders together today to announce proposed national legislation that address what “our” region is trying to do:  Tie housing to ready access mass transit.

The leaders understand that one of “the” solutions to the region’s affordable housing crisis is to marry housing density to such asses.  The City recently amended it’s municipal code to promote that. SANDAG’S Executive Director Hasan Ikrata and staff are emphasizing so called “connectivity” as they push for a visionary plan involving billions of dollars for mass transit, including high speed rail.

The fact that Peters brought the aforementioned people together at the UTC Transit Center, with the Mid-Coast Trolley extension construction in the background, not to mention concentrated hi-rise housing to announce what he calls the “Build More Housing Near Transit Act,” was no random choice.  As he told the gathering and the media, “The taxpayers stepped up and paid a billion dollars for this.  But the other billion came from my employer, the federal government, which brings up the ‘Build More Housing Near Transit Act.”

It’s not just California that has an affordable housing crisis.  The nation has a housing stock shortage. Peters went on, “When we applied for the money, I noticed that the federal government never asked what we were going to do (building next to the line) that would ensure that people were going to ride it.”

Peters’ proposed legislation would tie federal transportation grants to a city or region’s policies promoting  housing that is readily accessible to mass transit.