Report Recommends Affordable Housing for Artists, 'Cultural Workers'

Berkeley's new Housing Element will include affordable housing and live-work spaces reserved for artists and "cultural workers," reports Berkeleyside's Supriya Yelimeli. A report based on a city survey also recommends consideration for a guaranteed basic income pilot program for people working in the arts.

These recommendations will be among several different priorities in the Housing Element discussion, which include affordable housing for marginalized groups, people who are homeless, families, residents who have been pushed out of Berkeley and the Bay Area, and many others, along with zoning changes to address the city’s legacy of racist housing laws.

The proposal's author, Councilmember Sophie Hahn, says the plan is one way to retain and bring back the creative class that fled Berkeley as housing prices rose. The report also highlighted the importance of safe live-work spaces, particularly in light of the Ghost Ship building fire that killed 36 in Oakland in 2016.

The article continues:

The Planning Commission referral suggests the city find space in commercial, manufacturing, and mixed-use buildings (in both new and existing properties), as well as exploring other possibilities. This would include affordable live-work spaces on the ground floor of some commercial areas, especially those on University Avenue and the San Pablo Avenue corridor in West Berkeley, which is considered the hub of the city’s arts, industrial and creative neighborhood.

The guaranteed basic income proposal would be modeled on similar programs in San Francisco and Minneapolis and, as the article notes, "would prioritize artists who are Black and people of color, and provide them with a monthly, unrestricted stipend to cover rent and food so they can continue their practice."