By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics
The campaign known as “YIGBY” – “Yes in God’s Backyard” – to allow churches, school districts, colleges, and universities to build affordable housing on their land failed in the waning days of the Colorado legislative session.
House Bill 1169 would have required local governments to allow residential development on land owned by those institutions.
The bill has sat in the state Senate, awaiting debate, since it cleared the Senate’s Local Government and Housing Committee on March 27.
On Monday, its sponsors, Sens. Tony Exum, D-Colorado Springs, and Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, acknowledged the bill didn’t have the votes to pass and asked that it be laid over to May 8, the day after the session’s end, which effectively would kill the bill.
Exum told Colorado Politics his church in Colorado Springs, Solid Rock, has already constructed affordable housing on its site, although the contractor has run into problems with subcontractors getting paid for their work.
In a statement after the bill cleared the House, Speaker Pro Tem Andrew Boesenecker, D-Fort Collins, noted the state’s housing shortage is in excess of 100,000 units.
“Religious groups and schools that want to be a part of the solution should be able to build more homes that people can afford,” he said. “From supporting low-income communities to attracting quality educators, the missions of churches, synagogues, and schools often align with our state’s need for more housing. By cutting red tape, this policy is a meaningful solution that will open up thousands of acres of land across our state to help save Coloradans money on housing.”