Planning board member Jeff Templeton has written the following letter re: Affordable Housing Task Force.
"f you didn’t make the quarterly public hearing on Monday night before
the Boone Planning Board and Town Council, then you missed an
interesting discussion on the future of Multi-family Developments (aka
apartments) in the town of Boone. The Town of Boone Affordable Housing
Task Force, represented by Chairman Lynwood Brown and task force member
Pam Williamson, presented their vision for Multi-family housing in
Boone. Unfortunately that vision did not include ASU students or the
very group the task force was charged to help, those needing affordable
housing. What Mrs. Williamson presented was a text amendment to the
town’s development ordinance for ALL new multi-family housing that
included provisions targeting the development of student housing and
provided nothing to encourage the creation of new affordable housing.
Provisions like; parking limited to a maximum of two spaces per unit,
limits on the number of bathrooms per unit, and a restriction on
occupancy of no more than two unrelated persons per unit, were clearly
designed to prevent the occupancy of ASU students in any future
apartment developments in the Boone planning jurisdiction.
So, who
would this benefit if passed? The answer is no one. Obviously the
students would lose out as the new regulations would put a halt to any
new student apartments in Boone, thus creating a housing shortage for
the anticipated 1000-4000 additional students expected to attend ASU in
the coming years. The law of supply & demand would dictate that ASU
students would only see rental prices increase in the future as a
result. Those needing affordable housing would lose out. The teachers,
firemen, and hospital workers seeking affordable housing would be no
better off as the regulations do nothing to encourage the development of
any new affordable housing or the renovation of existing properties for
affordable housing. What about those of us who are tired of the “Mega
Apartment Complexes” around town? Well, you would lose out too. The
shortage of student housing would only increase the demand for single
family homes in the neighborhoods in and around Boone. Additionally,
these large complexes would continue to be built outside of Boone,
resulting in increased traffic and congestion.
So what is the
answer? Cooperation for one thing. The Town of Boone could work with
developers to provide land for affordable housing projects. This
Public/Private partnership is commonly used to create affordable housing
in other communities. Another common approach would be incentives such
as higher density allowances for developments that include affordable
housing units. And thirdly, the Town of Boone could remove some of the
barriers to affordable housing projects by waiving the expensive
non-refundable deposit for water allocations and application fees for
qualified projects.
The problem of affordable housing is real and
the need is great, but so is the need for additional student housing.
The long and the short of it is Boone and ASU are forever destined to
coexist in this valley in the mountains. There is room for all of us,
if we can just find ways to work together.
Jeff Templeton
Boone Planning Board Member (ETJ)"
7 comments:
Democrat article...
http://www2.wataugademocrat.com/News/story/County-New-regs-would-kill-old-WHS-sale-id-010370
quotes from article:
"
Members of the task force argued that the market is not providing a balanced array of housing stock for families and professionals such as teachers and policemen."
Yep, you read it right. The market doesn't provide what "central planning" thinks it should so we must now have government intervention. Let "central planning" determine what people need and how it is to be provided. Note also in article that the market apparently encourages builders to put in too many bathrooms in their projects. Central planning will limit the number of bathrooms as well as the size of master bedrooms and the maximum number of parking spaces.
After all....as Central Planner Pam Williamson says...
"Task force Vice Chairwoman Pam Williamson acknowledged it is "probably true" that affordable housing will cost developers more to build ".
"The question is: what's enough (profit)?" Williamson said.
We don't make this stuff up!!!!
I was there. The woman Williamson? was the one who got every single person there to admit that there is a absolute need for affordable housing. Now she even has Templeton saying it. She read out quotes from just about every conservative and liberal who was elected with them saying it. Then she pretty much said we had to decide whether we were going to do something or not. She put the monkie on our back. She really did. I was there.
I wasn't at the hearing, and I agree with much of what Mr. Templeton has said, but frankly I think it's a stretch to assert we need more student housing.
I say let the market decide what housing we need. Developers who build student housing that "isn't needed", won't be in business for long. AND, any housing units vacant because we "don't need them" will certainly cause their prices to drop.
NewGuy, the free market will always correct itself if allowed to do so. Your post makes to much sense to be understood by Ms. Williamson and her ilk.
But are you really pushing for a 'free market'?
yes
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