State candidate's criticism of Howard house-lottery draws rebukes

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Jul 30, 2002 by Melanie Starkey

As a first-time electoral candidate, Belinda Conaway is fighting for the rights of black people within the Baltimore City district she hopes to represent and around the state. But the people she's picked a fight with say she doesn't have the facts.

Conaway issued a statement last Friday berating Howard County for its new housing lottery program, which is designed to draw middle- income residents into the state's wealthiest county. In her bid for a seat representing the 40th district in the House of Delegates this fall, Conaway said "the lottery is both illegal and immoral."

But she acknowledged that she hasn't looked into the laws yet.

"I have not researched any specific laws, but if it's not illegal, I think it's unethical," she said.

The lottery, the first in the county, will allow individuals and families living or working in the county and earning between around $35,600 and $50,000 to apply, and will not take ethnicity into account, according to Leonard Vaughan, director of the county's Community Development and Housing Office.

The figures represent the approximate minimum salary to be able to afford a house and the maximum salary to qualify as moderate income by the commission's standards. That's about 80 percent of the Baltimore region's median income.

The commission will begin formal advertising for the first lottery Aug. 8, and will select winners of nine houses in the Cherrytree development in the fall. Future lotteries are in the works, Vaughan said.

The "low minority population" in the county could work against blacks, decreasing their chances of winning a house, said Conaway, a Democrat. Instead, she said the county should open up the lottery to all Maryland residents.

According to the 2000 census, Howard County's population is 14.4 percent black, almost exactly at the middle of a list of black populations in all other Maryland counties. Very similar is the 15.1 percent black composition of Montgomery County, home to the modestly priced dwelling unit program, the model for Howard County's lottery.

Since the early 1970s, the dwelling unit program has provided housing to those who fall within a set salary range and who live or work in Montgomery County. Those who do not live or work in the county may apply, but can only win if no one who qualifies applies for the available housing.

The county's upper qualifying salary is based on about 60 percent of the median salary income, but it's looking to raise that number soon, said Eric Larsen, program administrator at the Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs. Winners are selected at random from the qualifying entries. Larsen could not recall any challenges to the legality of the program.

Conaway, who was not aware of the dwelling unit program, also argued that if state money is used to fund the Howard County lottery, then residents of the entire state should be allowed to participate. Neither county uses state money to fund their programs.

Both counties sell the houses near or at cost to lottery winners. Zoning laws in the counties require developers building more than a certain number of homes, whether they be single-family detached or townhouses, to designate a percentage for the lottery. The developers do not make a profit off the homes, and the county does not have to pay for any portion of houses. All administrative costs are covered by county funds, according to Vaughan and Larsen.

In addition, both programs have methods to bring the houses back to the program should the occupants choose to move out. Howard County will maintain the right of first purchase, which allows it to either buy the house back at cost, or to sell it on the open market and retain a percentage of the sales, which will then be put back in the program.

Montgomery County has a similar deal, but with a time restraint. Occupants selling the house before living in it 10 years must sell it back to the county. After the first 10 years, they may sell on the market and split some of the profits with the county. Either way, the county can either put the house or the money back into the program, said Terry Logan, principal administrative aid for the program.

Conaway was still concerned that minorities might not qualify within the salary range for housing.

"I would like to see it fair for everyone and I don't know what the incomes are for minorities that work and live in Howard County," she said. "I would certainly like to know that minorities have an equally fair chance of winning."

Vaughan believes her worry is unfounded.

"We feel that we need to serve persons who are currently in the county. We have people who are working at mid-level jobs who need housing in Howard County. The purpose is to provide housing for people who live or work in the county," he said. "I don't think Ms. Conaway knows exactly what she's talking about. "