A quarter of Athens-Clarke County faces poverty leaving many citizens scrambling to find affordable housing
Written by Drew Bearden
Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz speaking to students and staff at the University of Georgia on Friday about the arising housing crisis. (Photo / Drew Bearden)
Mayor Kelly Girtz addressed the growing housing issue in Athens-Clarke County during a news conference with students and staff at the University of Georgia on Friday.
Athens-Clarke County currently faces one of the largest housing issues in its history. Fair market prices (FMR) in Athens are higher than the national average. According to RentData.org the Athens FMR is more expensive than 85% of other FMR areas.
Mayor Kelly Girtz said, “We find that over 4,700 households, not individuals, but households in Athens are severely cost burdened.”
Athens-Clarke County has seen a 17.49% increase in the fair price market of housing within the area as the average cost for rent is up almost $200. Mayor Girtz said he and his team also found that while rents were up 54%, people’s incomes on a household average were only up 29%.
Many students scramble for housing every year and among them is Fifth-year student Jacob Strine, who’s experienced plenty of housing issues.
Strine said, “When I first started living there (5 years ago) rent was $500 per person and now my rent is almost $700 a month.”
Several students are burdened with the housing issue because of their need for accessibility to the campus but also because working conditions differ for people who will be leaving soon to go out into the real world.
Jacob Strine said “Working in Athens and being a college student, you don’t really get raises, you’re just trying to make it by.”
Mayor Girtz said his team expects another 30,000 people to move to Athens in the next 20 years and has multiple ideas on how to be prepared for when the time comes.
The Athens-Clarke County government has provided the Future Land Use Plan for citizens to express how they want the land used and which parts of the land should be used for the upcoming changes in Athens.
Multiple projects like revamping the mall and adding high rises downtown are what makes Mayor Kelly Girtz very optimistic of the future, and said we will be “responsive” to what lies ahead of housing in Athens-Clarke County.
Tags: housing, athens clarke county, land use
Why I Wrote the Story:
I wrote this story because affordable housing has become more prominent in Athens with prices rising seemingly everywhere. This story provides an outlet for citizens to see their mayor’s plan to respond to the issue. It also shows how how the mayor interacts with students giving them a time to address their concerns.