To the editor:

Affordable housing will not be solved by increasing the number of unrelated individuals allowed to live in houses that might otherwise be considered affordable. Instead, investors will have an opportunity to buy these homes and make higher profits as each additional person will pay rent. These landlords will not be living in your neighborhood. As has happened in the past, neighborhoods become largely rentals, schools close, grocery stores move. The quality of life declines. A healthy mix of living opportunities is lost.

The crisis of affordable housing is much bigger than increasing the density in homes. We may be creating substandard living conditions for a growing segment of our population versus providing fair wages, resources, quality education and training opportunities. Our state and federal governments are creating a greater disparity between rich and poor, heading toward the super-rich and beggars. Power and money are agents of change but not necessarily for a healthy, thriving society.

Candice Davis,

Lawrence