Solution Paper Example

Solution Paper

    *****  Present the Issue

Homelessness is a problem in the city of Boston. According to The Boston Globe there are over 2,000 people on the streets of our city.  A fair percentage of those folks have been displaced from their homes because of the high cost of renting an apartment. I believe a solution to this issue will be to increase the number of low income slots that a developer must provide for new housing permits to be granted.

     *****  Talk about the Issue -- make a compelling case

Elaborate on issue. Research you have done—personal anecdotes.

On any given day the Pine Street Inn—a major homeless shelter in the South End of Boston-- is flooded with homeless people. The director, Joe Schwartz states in an interview with The New York Times, “There are not enough beds for all our potential clients… and it is hard to place people because of the exorbitant rents in the city. The average rent in the city of Boston for a residential unit is 2,000 a month…” ( cite)

      ****** Propose your solution

Presently the number of apartments allocated to low income tenants is 2 percent. I propose a 5% jump. According to the Wall Street Journal a 5% percent jump is sufficient to take over 1,000 people off the streets of our city. ( cite—paraphrase)

    ********* Answer objections to your solution

The Boston Realtor’s Association claims that this will dampen growth in the city. But a study at MIT, from the Urban institute refutes this: “The real estate industry constantly overestimates the negatives on this issue.”

      *******     CONCLUDE