We need affordable housing

Dear Mayor Walsh,

Hi, my name is Maddie and I am an eighth grader at the Edison K-8 school and I like to write in my free time. I am writing this letter to inform you about the lack of  affordable housing in Boston. I am lucky enough to have a nice home to live in where I can eat food on a dinner table, have heat to keep me warm in the winter and a comfortable bed to sleep in. But I know other people do not and that needs to be solved. There are not a lot of affordable housing options for people, and when there isn’t affordable housing it is more likely for people to become homeless. We don’t want this to happen!  

According to the department of neighborhood development, 2,348 people in the city of Boston are homeless and creating affordable housing in Boston can keep the number of homeless people from increasing. 

This is a nationwide issue. The National Low Income Housing Coalition reports that “500,000+ people are experiencing homelessness on any given night,” and “[n]ationally, there is a shortage of more than 7 million affordable homes for our nation’s 11 million plus extremely low-income families.” Boston is an old city and we have always been a leader to other cities around the world. We are Boston Strong but to be really strong we have to come together and help our struggling families and homeless people.

My dad works at the Pine Street Inn and he sees hundreds of homeless people come into the shelter all day, and he only is one person. Homeless people deserve to live in a comfortable home. We must help them get back on their feet and stop poor families from becoming homeless. 

In order to solve this issue I would like to see:

1. Investment in public affordable housing 
2. The creation of an affordable housing trust 
3. Increase the amount of  websites with housing information 
4. Abandoned buildings turned into affordable housing

Affordable housing is good for the city of Boston because it provides stability, and it is good for poor families and their kids. Poor housing can result in kids developing behavioral problems because they don’t have a house and they have to worry about where they are going to live. Kids should worry about friends and having fun and spending time with their family. 

Lets make our city a leader and set an example for other cities to follow so we as a nation can solve this issue. 

Sincerely, 

Maddie