This potential bond issue (and resulting property-tax payments) is for the City of San Diego only.  From the U-T:

Supporters of a $900 million housing bond say they will continue pursuing the measure for the November ballot, despite the sharp economic downturn reducing incomes for many San Diego property owners who would be paying the tax increase.

The decision was based primarily on a new telephone poll of 850 likely voters that showed 69 percent support the measure, just above the 66.7 percent needed for approval and a drop in support of only 2 percent since last November.

“Until we saw the poll results, it was totally up in the air,” said Stephen Russell, who is spearheading the effort for the San Diego Housing Federation.  “When we went to poll, we thought we were going to see cratering in the numbers. It was compelling that we are only two points lower than our polling in November.”

Some critics say that an economic downturn is the wrong time to burden property owners with higher property taxes. Russell said the people most affected by the downturn are low-wage workers who pay rent and are most vulnerable to becoming homeless.

The proposal would raise taxes on San Diego property owners to pay for roughly 7,500 subsidized apartments, 2,800 units for the formerly homeless and 4,700 units for veterans, senior citizens, the disabled and low-income families. In addition to the local money it would raise, the measure would help San Diego secure a greater share of state and federal money devoted to homelessness and affordable housing, by providing local matching funds.

The bond measure would cost property owners $19 per year for every $100,000 of assessed value. The average homeowner with a $600,000 property would pay $115 per year, he said.

But owners of large amounts of commercial, industrial or residential property would pay significantly more.

Councilman Chris Ward said this week that the poll shows that the council should give voters a chance to support the bond measure in November. “These results show that San Diegans want a comprehensive solution to homelessness,” he said. “This level of support is striking, given the number of issues currently competing for their attention.”

Some critics of the proposed bond have suggested reduced payments for large property owners, many of whom already have paid affordable housing fees on projects they’ve built on those properties.

Russell noted that the $115 per year estimate of property owner payments would not come immediately. In the first few years, the amount would be lower and wouldn’t climb to $115 until the council authorized selling all of the bonds.

A key argument in favor of the bond is that San Diego is losing ground to other cities and counties in California, such as Los Angeles and much of the Bay Area, that have passed similar measures.

That’s because those areas are eligible for state matching funds for construction of affordable housing that San Diego can’t access because the city has no local stream of money dedicated to the problem.

The City Council is expected to make a final decision in July on whether to place the housing bond on the November ballot. Measures for that ballot must get council approval by Aug. 7.

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