Experts agree a combination of economic, social, legal and cultural factors contributes to overcrowded housing in Frederick. That may be part of the reason the city's code enforcement office has experienced an increase in complaints about overcrowded dwellings.
Last week, city code enforcers condemned 5712 Butterfly Lane. The inspectors also served six cease-and-desist orders on properties scattered around the city that have been illegally converted from single-family dwellings into rooming houses.
Peter Zamora works as the regional counsel in Washington for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund. The organization works to advocate for and protect the rights of the more than 45 million Hispanics in the U.S.
Zamora believes the lack of immigration reform at the federal level has led some local governments to use regulations to target immigrants.
He points to a recent measure in Prince William County, Va., that denies undocumented immigrants access to community services, such as health care and education. It authorizes county workers to verify the immigration status of anyone on whom a reasonable suspicion exists.
"Certainly, a local community has the ability to put in place health and safety regulations — if it's addressing a real concern, it can be legitimate," Zamora said. "But often we have seen something that has been framed as health- and safety-related that has another purpose."
Is immigration the issue?
Mike Blank, the city's code enforcement manager, said last week's inspections and orders have nothing to do with immigration — the properties were either illegally converted or endangered residents' safety.
"Our office could care less if there are legal or illegal immigrants living in these properties — that's not our concern," he said. "Even if we were looking for illegals, it wouldn't have mattered at Butterfly Lane — the owner and people living there are legal residents."
Inspectors found nine people, including four children, living in the two-bedroom residence which had been converted into an illegal rooming house.
At one time, more than a dozen people lived there, a resident said after the inspection. Occupants used eight makeshift bedrooms, a crude basement kitchen and a backyard shed converted into a living space.
Blank said the house was targeted because it received the most complaints.
While the investigation spanned about a year, last month Mayor Jeff Holtzinger authorized $30,000 for overtime needed to conclude the investigation and increase inspections on other properties.
"There is always a cost to everything, but that's not a factor here," Blank said. "Our main focus is to make sure everyone has a safe place to live in and to protect the quality of life in our community."
Causes of overcrowding
A high cost of living and rising property values top the list of reasons experts gave to explain why some people are forced to live in overcrowded conditions.
Mike Spurrier, director of the Frederick Community Action Agency, said costs rise the closer residents live to Washington. The agency provides food, shelter, medical care, housing and other forms of assistance to low-income or homeless people.
Residents in Montgomery County, between Washington, D.C., and Frederick County, pay an average of 33 percent more than the national average for living expenses, according to the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. It costs residents about 14 percent more than average to live in Frederick County. Washington County residents pay about average, while those in Allegany County pay about 20 percent less than average.
"Definitely, an issue of the overcrowding sits in the cost of housing — it's skyrocketing in Frederick," Spurrier said. "People tend to double up because they can't afford to live on their own."
Not having the proper documents can make it impossible for immigrants to find a place to rent, Spurrier said. That often leads to substandard or overcrowded housing, regardless of their legal status.
"You could be a legal immigrant from Russia, but have difficulty establishing a credit history," he said. "Many landlords are looking for credit reports, but immigrants don't have access to that."
Language barriers and differences in culture make things worse, he said. Even native English-speakers don't understand jargon on leases or other legal documents. Many immigrants don't have the money to hire an interpreter.
In other countries, it's common for several generations to live together in a single house.
"It's human nature for people to want to be around those they feel comfortable with," Spurrier said. "If you go to any major metro area, you'll see communities who are Irish or Cuban or Russian living in neighborhoods where they feel culturally connected to each other."
Not enough help
Jenny Short, director of Housing and Community Development for Frederick County, said the closing of public housing projects and the lack of affordable residences also contribute to overcrowding.
For years, the county has offered housing vouchers and federal rental subsidies to families who earn less than 50 percent of the median income, which was $69,005 in 2004.
More residents have applied than the county can help. Waiting lists are closed because of scarce money, Short said. That keeps the program manageable and prevents false hope.
Eileen Barnhard, the city's housing rehabilitation financial specialist, said a sluggish economy, rising cost of living and the high price of real estate also contribute to overcrowded housing. An increase in adjustable rate mortgage foreclosures made things worse.
"When you have an adjustable rate, that rate sometimes goes up every six months," she said. "People have become very marginalized using upwards of 45 percent of their income for these deals."
The rule of thumb used to be to spend about one-third of income on housing expenses, but most people spend much more, she said. The cost of living is not proportionate to people's incomes.
"It's not just the cost to buy a house that's rising, it's also the cost to live in that house — the cost of gas has doubled and tripled, electricity is rising, food prices have gone up," Barnhard said. "People are putting themselves in debt and living paycheck to paycheck trying to survive."
Housing workers
A booming job market and gentrification concern James Upchurch, director of Interfaith Housing Alliance. The alliance is the largest nonprofit affordable housing association in Frederick County.
As more jobs come to Frederick, the professionals they draw displace those in mid- to low-income households, he said. That's because houses can't be built fast enough to meet the demand.
As more high-earning residents come to Frederick, the need for service workers also rises, he said. When teachers, shopkeepers and first responders can't find a place to live, they either commute or double up.
"There is a real disconnect between the jobs that are coming here, like to Fort Detrick, and the growing needs of the community," Upchurch said. "People with lower-paying jobs are taking advantage of the jobs we want them to do, but when you don't create affordable housing, these people don't have a lot of options here in town."
Richard Yeron, director of Centro de Familia, provides social services to immigrants. He compared the living arrangements of many immigrants to those of college students -- they rent a house, divide up the living spaces and split the rent.
He described two clients, both engineers at Bechtel Corporation, who share the cost of a two-bedroom apartment.
"They can't afford to have their own housing," Yeron said. "For two Ph.D. engineers educated in this country to go through that, you can imagine what it must be like for people who don't have an education." (fredericknewspost.com)
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