Candidates for Boston City Council’s at-large seats say housing is the best issue facing the city, though they disagree on how to solve it.
Seven of the eight hopefuls vying for four seats in the city’s November election gathered on Thursday night at a housing forum in Roxbury to discuss how to help Bostonians with unaffordable rents and inaccessible homeownership. Data show the median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Boston is immediately $3,200.
In the September preliminary election, incumbents Ruthzee Louijeune, Julia Mejia, Erin Murphy and Henry Santana topped the ticket, with challengers Frank Baker, Alexandra Valdez, Marvin Mathelier and Will Onuoha coming in behind.
The sharpest exchange of the night was over rent control — especially between candidates who came in at the bottom of the September preliminary election.
Dorchester’s Will Onuoha, who served for a decade as the deputy commissioner of housing at Boston’s Inspectional Services Department, said rent control is not the answer.
“Rent control is a slow poison,” he said.
“ Mom and pop landlords cannot keep up with it,” Onuoha added. “They’re stuck making a decision between, ‘Do I pay the mortgage, do I pay the property tax, or do I maintain the unit?’ ”
He instead advocated for workforce housing — units for people who make too much to be eligible for most subsidized housing programs. But Jamaica Plain’s Marvin Mathelier said that’s not a quick enough solution, and spoke to Onuoha’s professional experience directly in an eyebrow raising moment. (The two candidates came in 7th and 8th, respectively.)
“You got that background. [You’re a] subject-matter expert when it comes to that,” Mathelier said to Onuoha. But “people cannot afford where they’re living immediately and they’re leaving so how is that helping out with us?”
Onuoha shook his head vigorously.
Rent control was banned in Massachusetts in 1994, and city council efforts to get it passed in Boston were blocked on Beacon Hill last year. A proposal to allow it could be on the state ballot in 2026.
“ I always say that everything we send to the State House,” Mejia said, “usually we end up having a funeral because all of our bills just die right there.”
At the forum sponsored by Abundant Housing Massachusetts and the Queer Neighborhood Council, Baker slammed “bureaucracy” as the main impediment to housing production, and floated ideas to cut red tape, such as cutting back on the paperwork required upfront to build. Valdez said she’d like to see the city permit more accessory dwelling units. Santana said he’s working on efforts to allow more triple deckers in Boston. Mejia called to raise the minimum number of affordable housing units that developers must build into new projects. Louijeune highlighted her recent moves to prioritize turning municipal buildings into housing. Murphy did not attend the forum.
During a lightning round, all seven candidates at the forum agreed to support accessory dwelling units by right citywide. That would mean a property owner can build small attached apartments or backyard units on their property without a special permit.
Every candidate, except Louijeune and Baker, also agreed they would eliminate parking minimums for all residential developments.
Baker and Onuoha, the more conservative candidates of the group, also said they wouldn’t unilaterally support a measure meant to encourage housing near public transit. The proposed policy would allow developers to construct buildings up to 12 stories high within a half-mile of mass transit. All other candidates said they would support it.
The general municipal election on Nov. 4 will allow voters to make their choice for at-large councilors, district councilors and mayor (Mayor Michelle Wu is running unopposed after Josh Kraft dropped out). Early voting begins Oct. 25.
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