mrfootball Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/cyf...ws/4265801.htmlTax-credit housing.Glad to see they shot this down. The same developer, Cynosure, was attempting to do the same thing next to a neighborhood off 249, Northpointe, the proposed 'Willow Creek' apts...which was also successfully defeated. There are well over a dozen such projects (some funded, some not) proposed all over the Houston area.Just more pork and corporate giveaways using gov't subsidized bonds to make insider-type developers rich creating more useless cheap rental housing. Last year, the state authorized an unprecedented amount of money for these projects in response to the Katrina/Rita disasters. A lot of shady developers entered with their proposals to try and take advantage of the available public bond money to stick their low-rent developments in among nice neighborhoods, much to the chagrin of area residents. The county finally realized what was going on with the flood of proposals despite there being a lot of vacancy and has supposedly put standards in effect to try and keep areas from becoming too saturated with these types of developments.Of course, this is one of those things that isn't made widely available for public knowledge, as it benefits certain segments of the population (namely developers and low-income) at the expense of homeowners and taxpayers. If more people knew about it, they'd be limited as to where they could put these things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/cyf...ws/4265801.htmlTax-credit housing. Glad to see they shot this down. The same developer, Cynosure, was attempting to do the same thing next to a neighborhood off 249, Northpointe, the proposed 'Willow Creek' apts...which was also successfully defeated. There are well over a dozen such projects (some funded, some not) proposed all over the Houston area. Just more pork and corporate giveaways using gov't subsidized bonds to make insider-type developers rich creating more useless cheap rental housing. Last year, the state authorized an unprecedented amount of money for these projects in response to the Katrina/Rita disasters. A lot of shady developers entered with their proposals to try and take advantage of the available public bond money to stick their low-rent developments in among nice neighborhoods, much to the chagrin of area residents. The county finally realized what was going on with the flood of proposals despite there being a lot of vacancy and has supposedly put standards in effect to try and keep areas from becoming too saturated with these types of developments. Of course, this is one of those things that isn't made widely available for public knowledge, as it benefits certain segments of the population (namely developers and low-income) at the expense of homeowners and taxpayers. If more people knew about it, they'd be limited as to where they could put these things. To be completely clear, Cynosure and the TDHCA could care less about neighborhood protests. The TDHCA gets this kind of stuff all the time and it usually doesn't phase them a bit. Projects get shot down regularly for a variety of technical reasons. This is not some kind of grassroots victory, even though it is semi-ambiguous in the Chronicle's portrayal of the story. Having said that, LIHTC program is IMO exactly as you describe it. An unwarranted subsidy to developers and the lower class. Besides, not only is the TDHCA's mission flawed, but the way that they carry it out is flawed. The technical analysis that is used is often arbitrary, manipulated, or completely irrelevant. This, from someone who knows... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrfootball Posted October 24, 2006 Author Share Posted October 24, 2006 Actually, the grass roots effort does play a role. I would like to see a larger grass-roots effort in play to bring more sunlight to this practice of giving away hundreds of millions in public/gov't subsidies to these developers and low-income people.IMO, It's a slap in the face to hard working taxpayers.Another thing that's been going on quietly under our noses is the Federal Housing Administration's removal of thousands of foreclosed homes from the market, and moving in displaced Katrina/Rita families with free-rent for a year and an option to buy at significant discounts. They're doing this all over town, which helps explain why neighborhoods like Olde Oaks and numerous others saw a dramatic spike in property crimes (well above traditional averages). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 Actually, the grass roots effort does play a role.They only let you think it does. When technical problems arrise, it is an easy way for the developer to save face by stating that they were reconsidering the project as a result of pressures from the neighborhood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston1stWordOnTheMoon Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 Actually, the grass roots effort does play a role. I would like to see a larger grass-roots effort in play to bring more sunlight to this practice of giving away hundreds of millions in public/gov't subsidies to these developers and low-income people.IMO, It's a slap in the face to hard working taxpayers.Another thing that's been going on quietly under our noses is the Federal Housing Administration's removal of thousands of foreclosed homes from the market, and moving in displaced Katrina/Rita families with free-rent for a year and an option to buy at significant discounts. They're doing this all over town, which helps explain why neighborhoods like Olde Oaks and numerous others saw a dramatic spike in property crimes (well above traditional averages).I am no fan of apartments of any type in my neighborhood. I would like to see all apartments banished to some where else, anywhere, as long as they are not here. For the low income thing, i am glad something is being done to help people that are not as fortunate as some of us here. For the hurricane survivors i think it is a nice thing. Many of those people were completely wiped out and lost everything. Many didnt even have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of. Its good to see they are having a helping hand. If we can send billions of dollars overseas to help other nations, we sure as hell can help our own countrymen when they need it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PureAuteur Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 What about all the apartments around Willowbrook and 249 currently? These are mainly moderately to upper priced apartments with solid and/or decent tenants. You can't be against all apartments in general based on the ones currently in place. They've been there for years and have not created any major problems for the nw suburbs along 249. I'm thinking it's low income, govt subsidized apartments that you are against. There are lots of people around my age (25) who were raised upper middle class and are not making enough to finance a home, so we need apartments in good neighborhoods for these people at least... especially the ones who are working and take graduate school courses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrfootball Posted October 25, 2006 Author Share Posted October 25, 2006 Auteur brings up a valid point. There are many such apartments that cater to young professionals, college kids, and recent transfers. The AMLI across from HP is one such development. I lived at AMLI Midtown for 5 years before I got married and moved to the burbs. It was a fun development with lots of post-college young people in their mid 20's to early 30's. One thing I noticed is that there never were whole "families" living there.I think for the most part its the Section 8 and gov't subsidized housing that people don't like, along with the element it attracts. Of course there are the illegal aliens and transients who populate the older apartment projects, overcrowding them with whole familes (extended), and then using up local services. Crime is disproportionately high in many areas around apartments and that is why they are seen as undesireable.I think any developer looking to dump an apartment complex into their new upscale mixed use development ought to think twice about the long term implications. Right now in Houston there is a lot of apprehension from Homeowners about Apartments and what they bring. Obviously people have seen what's gone on with the whole Katrina fiasco and are now quite attuned to how easily the same thing can be introduced to their own neighborhood if there's a multifamily housing project (regardless of how 'nice' it is). Bottom line, Apartments bring DOWN property values.I think it's a slap in the face when they sneak these kinds of developments in among nice middle/upper middle class areas filled with hard-working taxpayers. The gov't should not be in the business of making sure welfare recipients enjoy a middle class lifestyle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westguy76 Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Actually, the grass roots effort does play a role. I would like to see a larger grass-roots effort in play to bring more sunlight to this practice of giving away hundreds of millions in public/gov't subsidies to these developers and low-income people.IMO, It's a slap in the face to hard working taxpayers.Another thing that's been going on quietly under our noses is the Federal Housing Administration's removal of thousands of foreclosed homes from the market, and moving in displaced Katrina/Rita families with free-rent for a year and an option to buy at significant discounts. They're doing this all over town, which helps explain why neighborhoods like Olde Oaks and numerous others saw a dramatic spike in property crimes (well above traditional averages).I'm right with you on this, In fact last november I believe my wife and I were looking to move up from where we were to a home in Cinco Ranch. Pickings were a little slim at the price point we were comfortable with. We found a nice 2 story that was bank owned and being sold through a real estate agent. It was a good $10 a square foot below comps in the area. We started inquiring on it and contacted the agent she was looking into what the seller was willing to concede to make a deal for us, (it needed a little work).Anyways, about when were ready to make an offer I go by to check it out again and the sign is gone out of the yard. It turns out FEMA snagged it up. I do some research and they tell me it was 1 of 1500 homes in the whole southeast of the country that they had taken off the market to give to Katrina evacuees to live in free indefinately(maybe it was a year or two). anyways i was heartbroken and kind of pissed. We found another house and it worked out for us, probably better. I drove by that house for months and still noone moved in. Eventually someone did, but the neighbors can't be happy the yard is overgrown whenever i have driven by, there is a gutter hanging off the house now too. Ridiculous!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston1stWordOnTheMoon Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 What about all the apartments around Willowbrook and 249 currently? These are mainly moderately to upper priced apartments with solid and/or decent tenants.Yeah yeah yeah. As i have said before, in this area people would rather pay a high mortgage than a high rent. That leaves the apt. market, in this area, in a pickle. No matter how expensive they start out as, they eventually go down hill inorder to make a profit by attracting tenants that will be longterm do to lower prices. That will undoubtely attract some criminal element as well. Take the apartments the hell away from here!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PureAuteur Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Well, like I said, where am I, along with the hundreds of other 20-somethings who were raised upper middle class supposed to live? I don't want to live at my parents house until I'm 30. I won't be able to afford a home until I'm 30, most likely. So that only leaves one thing, an apartment. If we didn't have the apartments in the Willowbrook area, I'd probably be living in some crummy area or else I'd have to move way out of town to escape the crime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Well, like I said, where am I, along with the hundreds of other 20-somethings who were raised upper middle class supposed to live? I don't want to live at my parents house until I'm 30. I won't be able to afford a home until I'm 30, most likely. So that only leaves one thing, an apartment. If we didn't have the apartments in the Willowbrook area, I'd probably be living in some crummy area or else I'd have to move way out of town to escape the crime.Bingo. This is why I'm so critical of attempts to inhibit non-subsidized apartment development.Imagine two neighborhoods. If one neighborhood is more pissy than another, all the apartments land in one place, creating a future slum...like Gulfton. If both neighborhoods are pissy, then everybody gets all riled up and frustrated, but either nothing will come of it or apartments as a whole will be banned from both areas and 20-somethings either live with their parents, live with a roommate, or pay unbearably high rents for the few apartments that are out there.In any case, a live and let live attitude prevails over the pissy-fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted October 29, 2006 Share Posted October 29, 2006 Grass-roots does work in some cases--the homeowners in Barkers Ridge protested at a hearing against the building of apartments near the subdivision, and they succeeded in stopping them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted October 29, 2006 Share Posted October 29, 2006 Grass-roots does work in some cases--the homeowners in Barkers Ridge protested at a hearing against the building of apartments near the subdivision, and they succeeded in stopping them.Believe what you will, but a lot of projects die for any number of reasons. And the political excuse is a very convenient out for the developer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.