At a recent Woodstock Town Board meeting in February 14, two board members questioned the integrity of volunteers serving on the town’s Housing Oversight Task Force, saying that the volunteers were “self-dealing,” potentially gaining financially from zoning revisions they were involved in writing.
This claim was not the result of research. It is false. It was levied because these task force members are also involved with the new community land trust, the Woodstock Housing Alliance, which was awarded federal funds by a 3-2 vote of the town board to implement a loan program for affordable accessory dwellings and home-sharing opportunities. The two town board members voted against the Woodstock Housing Alliance proposal. Although the claim of a conflict of interest is baseless in fact, one citizen commenting captured its intent. “It is about how it looks.”
We think this issue is too important to brush off. Our towns cannot function without the hard work and commitment of volunteer boards and committees. We take our roles seriously. We sign an ethics statement every year, detailing any conflicts of interest we may have related to our volunteering.
We live in a time when political corruption seems to be everywhere, and people are quick to believe such charges just because “everybody does it.” Volunteers on the Woodstock Housing Committee, the Housing Oversight Task Force, and the Woodstock Housing Alliance are concerned about this issue and want to refute that idea, at least in our town. If we do not resist the mudslinging and personality politics of our age, then we will see fewer people willing to run for office and serve on volunteer boards. We also risk further polarizing our community over the issue of affordable housing, which is often a victim of indirect negative campaigning.
This would be a tragedy. In a small town, people with passion and interest engage in the issues most important to them. If they have skills, they become leaders.
Housing, while hot in the news, does not attract large numbers of worker bees. Of course, the people who come forward to serve on a housing committee for the town will often be the same volunteers on our planning boards and on other housing-related committees and task forces. The layers of government responsibility exist to bring many voices to the process of legislating and also to check and balance. New zoning codes (in this case written with a professional consultant and a volunteer group of seven people who engaged with groups and individuals from across the community) require oversight by the county planning board, review by a qualified attorney, and ultimately consideration, amendment, and the votes of elected town-board members.
There are some of us who have been housing advocates in Woodstock for decades. With the passage of our comprehensive plan in 2018, affordable housing for Woodstock seniors, families, artists and volunteers became a stated priority. Zoning changes, using town-owned land for building, and having a community land trust (CLT) are essential to making this housing a reality. No strategy stands alone. Best practice supports all of these working together.
We hope that our efforts will not fall victim to negative campaigning. We are alert to early signs. Resistance to affordable housing comes in many forms. Questioning the viability and reputation of housing leaders in the town by innuendo rather than with facts diverts attention from the task at hand, a task which we hope most Woodstockers wholeheartedly support.
If you have a question about something going on in your town, ask it! If you want to know how a piece of legislation will be implemented, ask! If you want to know more about the people working on committees, ask!
Don’t assume the worst. It’s only “how it looks” if you haven’t bothered to find out what the reality is.
Join the family! 
