Mayoral candidates clash over how Ann Arbor should build affordable housing and prevent displacement

Christopher Taylor and Ysef Robi, the two Democratic candidates in Ann Arbor’s mayoral primary, sparred Tuesday over how the city should expand affordable housing and whether anti-displacement measures will slow development.

Taylor said the city is already expanding its supply, “We are building 1,200 units of new permanent affordable housing, tripling our supply,” and defended market-rate projects as a way to increase overall housing supply. He argued the city must balance ambition with fiscal reality and said affordable housing projects do not always generate the revenue needed to back large revenue bonds.

Robi pressed for a different approach: publicly owned, permanently affordable housing built on public land, expanded housing-commission rentals, cooperative housing and community land trusts. He urged the city to use bonding authority to finance housing rather than the proposal he described — a recent $350 million revenue-bond package he said would fund parking decks for a private developer — and to retain public land for long-term affordability.

The candidates also disagreed on whether rents are falling. Taylor said local rents have gone down, a point Robi disputed and invited residents to discuss after the forum, saying he has not met anyone whose rent has dropped.

Both candidates emphasized anti-displacement measures but offered different balances: Taylor said the anti-displacement resolution focuses on services that help people stay in place and would not derail the comprehensive land use plan if implemented with robust public engagement; Robi said the city should create a dedicated office to prevent displacement and assist residents facing tax or mortgage foreclosure and development-driven displacement.

What happens next: the candidates framed distinct policy choices for voters. Taylor emphasized continuing the city’s current pipeline of mixed projects, while Robi pushed a publicly led, permanent-affordability model that relies on bonding and retention of public land.

Sources and attribution: Quotes and positions are taken from remarks at the League of Women Voters forum (moderated by Katherine Mero).