Janet Cowell
Name: Janet Cowell
Which office are you seeking? Mayor
Campaign website: JanetCowellforMayor.com
Social media: LinkedIn, X, Facebook, Instagram - all some iteration of JanetCowell
The income of many households in Raleigh is too high to qualify for income-restricted/subsidized housing, yet these residents are cost-burdened by climbing prices and rents across market-rate housing. Explain at least 2 policies you will seek to implement to address the rising costs of market-rate housing in Raleigh.
1) I’d like to work with banks, foundations and churches to provide financing to individuals who can no longer afford to remain in their long-time home but would like to remain in the neighborhood. If there was third-party financing, one could build a duplex, triplex, etc. in the same site and then the individual/family could have equity in one unit while selling others. Helpful if these sorts of transactions were packaged/standardized in some way. Would need to partner with trusted entities like churches or long-standing non-profits.
2) Work with the City/Duke Energy/business community and others to scale existing programs like weatherization assistance, home repair, etc.
What is an issue in Raleigh that deserves critical attention, but isn't talked about much in the media or the community because it's not sensational or obviously apparent?
We have a few corridors with high-speed highways right in the middle of town that create physical divisions and hostile landscapes — Western Blvd/MLK south of downtown and Capital Blvd. north of town. We need to find ways to mitigate the impact of these roads - re-purpose the vehicular exit ramp bridge to Fairview Road as a pedestrian connector, build a Highline-like bridge connecting growth south of MLK/Western to southern downtown (this would also assist NCSU and Shaw University since Western/ MLK runs smack through their respective campuses). There are federal programs specifically addressing remedying past urban renewal projects that destroyed neighborhoods and divided cities. I am working on a Connecting Communities grant to address the Western/MLK corridor with Raleigh Housing Authority, Downtown Raleigh Alliance and others.
How will you balance the interests of individuals with those of the general public? Especially when voting on an issue that will negatively impact a small, but vocal group of residents, but which offers significant benefits to the general public?
The City and Council need to do a better job of articulating collective goals, tracking progress against those goals, and positioning individual cases in broader context. Need to improve community engagement to better include underrepresented voices including renters, young residents, and lower income residents.
Should Council allow more Missing Middle housing (duplex, triplex, townhomes and small apartment buildings) to be built in the City? If yes, how would you accomplish this? If not, why not?
Yes. My answer above on ‘packaging’ and providing financing is relevant here. Establish streamlined processing of standardized transactions. Promote via marketing and communications, including case studies.
Should the City continue investing in Bus Rapid Transit? If so, what additional investments and/or land use regulatory changes should the City make to support the successful implementation of the Western and Southern corridors? If no, why?
Yes. I would like to use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) related to this project as was fine in Charlotte along their public transit routes. One measures baseline property tax value. When property tax values escalate due to public investments, one captures a portion of that value to invest back into affordable housing or property tax assistance pools to mitigate displacement.
What is your vision for how Raleigh’s built environment should evolve over the next 10 years?
I expect Raleigh to grow more densely with more apartments and condos, more quad-, tri-, and duplexes. Focus growth in mixed-use centers located around the city and on transit lines. To offset this density, need to invest more in street trees, maintaining trees and nature along creeks and greenways. Would like Raleigh to better leverage our incredible greenway network by re-orienting select appropriate development to face creeks vs. turn our back to them. Repair past urban renewal damage and re-knit together the City.
How would you change the way the City's Office of Community Engagement operates?
In a city as large as Raleigh, we need technology-based solutions to enable timely, place-based, two-way communications with residents. Phone apps would be ideal. I understand there is an update/ improved app to “seeclickfix” soon to be rolled out. More automatic information would be helpful (e.g., minutes wait for the bus, number of parking spaces left in the lot, number of remaining days of road closure). Enhance QR codes. Increase hours of operation for city call centers. Partner with non-profits and other stakeholders.
Should the City preserve existing moderately priced housing (Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing) to help slow the rate of resident displacement? If yes, please provide 2-3 specific policies that you would ask your fellow Councilors to support. If no, what other policies do you support to address resident displacement?
Yes. The city already identifies apartment complexes to buy outright or partner with the owner to extend the life of the units in exchange for capping rental rates. Invest more in this program. Utilize government-, church-, or non-profit-owned property. Engage in a long-term land lease when a direct sale isn’t an option. My earlier answers regarding home repair, weatherization, and financing etc. applicable here.