The Madison Common Council approved a change to the city’s zoning code Tuesday night to incentivize more affordable housing or college students.
Students who apply for financial aid through the University of Wisconsin-Madison will be eligible for more affordable units. The city, developers and the university will partner together to ensure students who need affordable units the most are the ones getting the opportunity, according to a Sept. 11 city of Madison press release.
Students eligible for the program will be able to rent a bed or bedroom alongside other students who are paying market rate for another bed or bedroom in the same apartment unit.
District 8 Ald. MGR Govindarajan told The Daily Cardinal the students who are eligible for lower rent prices “maintain their privacy.”
Affordable housing is defined as “anything between 30% to 80% of the area median income (AMI),” according to Govindarajan.
“But for students, that's never really been a great indicator of affordability,” Govindarajan said. “Students don't usually have an income, we don't have a full time job. We're not making a full time salary, and that's what AMI really considers.”
The change in zoning code comes after the Common Council adopted the original downtown affordable housing height incentive last year, which incentivized developers downtown to exceed the maximum number of stories allowed in the downtown area in exchange for an agreement with the city to guarantee a portion of the extra units would be affordable.
The average UW-Madison student pays approximately $1,723 per month for housing, but “affordable” student rent was defined at around $980 per month, according to a study commissioned by the university and city of Madison.
The authors of the study recommended that the city continue to implement density bonuses and tax incentives, like the new housing program, to encourage the development of more affordable units.
Govindarajan said the new zoning change will “greatly benefit students” and in newer developments, such as the Oliv, qualified students will be able to enjoy the amenities while paying rent at a cheaper rate.
“It really does make a difference,” Govindarajan said. “[Students] are now able to apply for this program or apply for the housing automatically, and they will just have to pay a little bit less. Students can still live with their friends, even if it's not something they necessarily would have been able to afford before this program.”
Because of the zoning code now in place, the university and the city of Madison will work together to support the creation of more affordable off-campus housing, the release said.
Marin Rosen is the city news editor for The Daily Cardinal and a second-year journalism student. Throughout her time at the Cardinal, she's written articles for city and state news. She is an intern at Channel 3000 News and runs the Badger Beat on Instagram and TikTok. Follow her on Twitter at @marin_rosen
