The Vancouver Housing Authority wants jurisdictions in Clark County to agree to blanket approval of its housing projects outside of Vancouver, but some officials are hesitant. “I can see both sides of it,” Battle Ground City Councilor Victoria Ferrer said in an interview Tuesday. In the city of Vancouver — which formed VHA in 1942 to manage public housing projects during a rapid influx of wartime workers — the affordable housing builder doesn’t need city council approval for a housing project. The same is true within a 5-mile span around the city. But if VHA wants to create a project outside of that boundary, it needs permission from the government council with jurisdiction, according to Washington law. That means a public proceeding that could span over multiple meetings.

“Not only does that slow down the process considerably, it at times could lead to us losing the property … to other people,” VHA CEO Andy Silver said. Public discussions about price can undermine VHA’s negotiating power, Silver said, and delays could allow someone else to scoop up a property on the open market. Instead, VHA is asking jurisdictions in Clark County to pass a resolution allowing it to go forward with purchasing properties, like any other real estate developer, without council approval. The resolution could be helpful to cities as they plan for growth, Silver said. For the first time, Washington has required cities to plan their growth with affordability as a central focus.

“We’re offering our services to help them meet their goals knowing that there’s a pretty limited affordable housing development community here,” Silver said. “There (are) just not a lot of nonprofits or other entities that are going to be able to help Battle Ground, Washougal, Camas, Ridgefield meet their targets.” When county staff presented such a resolution to the Clark County Council two weeks ago, councilors seemed in support, although they have yet to vote on it. If the council passes the resolution, Silver hopes Washougal and Battle Ground follow suit. “I think this is great,” Clark County Councilor Wil Fuentes said. “I think what this does is removes a barrier at a time when we are struggling with building enough housing for our community members.” Battling for ground Although unsaid, the resolution would remove another barrier: the ability of cities and the county to deny VHA projects.

Jurisdictions outside of Vancouver can reject VHA projects for any reason — including aesthetics and public perception — despite many cities having reports detailing a need for more affordable housing. “At what part … is an overbalance of affordable housing going to cause a risk to the beauty and attractiveness of this area,” Battle Ground Councilor Eric Overholser said in an interview Wednesday. He’s one of the councilors who voted against allowing VHA to work with a private developer last April to create an apartment project that would almost double the amount of affordable housing being planned in the city. During the council meeting where councilors kept the partnership from moving forward, Battle Ground Deputy Mayor Shane Bowman said people have a perception that apartment residents steal. (He said he does not agree.)

Some councilors also expressed concern that the project, called Eaton Park, would not generate property taxes for the city because housing authorities are generally exempt. That could keep services from being adequately funded, they said. “I don’t know if we need to be in that big of a rush to jump on board and open the flood gates and say, ‘OK, build wherever you need.’ And the next thing you know our taxes are suffering,” Overholser said in an interview. Battle Ground has been reluctant to hand out financial incentives for affordable housing in the past. The city council earlier rejected a multifamily tax exemption for Eaton Park. In 2023, it declined to waive system development charges for an affordable senior housing complex called McNair Plaza, according to developers. Battle Ground hasn’t spent any of its own money, at least in the past five years, according to the city’s records department, to fund affordable housing, despite a 2021 city report showing a clear need for more.

The report found almost two-thirds of people who work in Battle Ground earn less than $40,000 annually. For housing to be considered affordable for them, rent would have to about $1,000 a month — 50 percent lower than the city’s average rent, according to the listing service RentCafe. Ferrer and Overholser both acknowledge the need for affordable housing but said Battle Ground needs to plan for growth while preserving its natural beauty. “I understand the urgent need for affordable housing, but I also, again, want to maintain the integrity of our community values,” Ferrer said. “We don’t want to look the same as Portland. We don’t want the high buildings and the density that comes with it.”

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