Creekside Golf Club owners sue HOA board for reserve fund spending
"Creekside Golf Club’s owners have asked a judge to remove the board of an adjacent homeowners association and put the HOA into receivership. It’s the latest volley in a two-year legal battle that will decide whether the club’s owners, developers Larry Tokarski and Terry Kelly, can close the South Salem championship course and turn it into a residential subdivision. The developers say the six members of the Creekside Homeowners Association Board, all of whom own golf course-view homes, illegally used the association’s reserve account to pay for an April 2016 lawsuit alleging the course must remain open indefinitely. That bankrupted the association, raising monthly assessments for the many homeowners whose property values would not be affected by the course’s closure, the lawsuit alleges."
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I haven't looked up any of the pleadings, but this looks like an unusual situation. The golf course owners seem to be claiming there is no contractual or property rights connection between the golf course and the residential properties, so they can turn the course into a subdivision if they want to. But the HOA said that buyers were promised in their original covenants that there would be a golf course next door. Deborah Goonan did a long post on HOA conflicts involving golf courses that mentions this case and others.
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
Thursday, February 22, 2018
Autonomous Vehicles Are Coming, and California Isn’t Ready – Streetsblog California
Autonomous Vehicles Are Coming, and California Isn’t Ready – Streetsblog California
"Reynolds, testifying to the committee, said that as currently worded the federal act would prohibit states and cities from adopting, maintaining, or enforcing “any rules or standards regulating the design, construction, or performance of AV systems with respect to safety, data recording, cybersecurity, human-machine interface, crash-worthiness, post-crash behavior, or automation function.” It would also prohibit states from promulgating any rules on any other issue regarding AVs, including requiring any of them to be electric or subjecting them to VMT fees. It would nullify S.B. 1298, which in 2012 called for the California Department of Motor Vehicles to create safety rules for testing AVs in the state, and it could potentially nullify the rules that resulted from that law as well as prevent the DMV from updating them—although they sorely need updating, and the DMV is in the process of doing so. The act, said Reynolds, “jeopardizes the state’s ability to regulate safety, congestion, and environmental benefits of AVs. Preemption is a feature, not a bug.”
--------------
The rest of the developed world is enjoying high-speed rail, and we are dithering while trains go off the tracks, bridges teeter on the edge of collapse, and we have a multi-trillion dollar deficit in just fixing the infrastructure we already have. The rest of the developed word is planning cities around a (very near) future of electric, self-driving, shared vehicles, with homes powered by solar energy. We are under the boot of a federal government that is bought and paid for by big oil.
"Reynolds, testifying to the committee, said that as currently worded the federal act would prohibit states and cities from adopting, maintaining, or enforcing “any rules or standards regulating the design, construction, or performance of AV systems with respect to safety, data recording, cybersecurity, human-machine interface, crash-worthiness, post-crash behavior, or automation function.” It would also prohibit states from promulgating any rules on any other issue regarding AVs, including requiring any of them to be electric or subjecting them to VMT fees. It would nullify S.B. 1298, which in 2012 called for the California Department of Motor Vehicles to create safety rules for testing AVs in the state, and it could potentially nullify the rules that resulted from that law as well as prevent the DMV from updating them—although they sorely need updating, and the DMV is in the process of doing so. The act, said Reynolds, “jeopardizes the state’s ability to regulate safety, congestion, and environmental benefits of AVs. Preemption is a feature, not a bug.”
--------------
The rest of the developed world is enjoying high-speed rail, and we are dithering while trains go off the tracks, bridges teeter on the edge of collapse, and we have a multi-trillion dollar deficit in just fixing the infrastructure we already have. The rest of the developed word is planning cities around a (very near) future of electric, self-driving, shared vehicles, with homes powered by solar energy. We are under the boot of a federal government that is bought and paid for by big oil.
What's Missing From the Housing Recovery? New Condos | realtor.com®
What's Missing From the Housing Recovery? New Condos | realtor.com®: "With the last financial crisis now firmly in the rearview mirror, builders are swinging their hammers again and putting up sorely needed new homes. But something’s missing amid all the scaffolding: condos.
Their absence is already being felt by first-time and cash-strapped buyers contending with record-high home prices thanks to the lack of properties on the market. Condos, which are often more affordable than traditional single-family houses with backyards, may seem like a solution. But builders are shying away from putting them up, even in urban areas, where they're often the most concentrated. Why?"
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To put it bluntly, the answer is because growing income inequality makes it more attractive to build luxury homes for rich people, and because building cheap condos leads to construction defect litigation.
Their absence is already being felt by first-time and cash-strapped buyers contending with record-high home prices thanks to the lack of properties on the market. Condos, which are often more affordable than traditional single-family houses with backyards, may seem like a solution. But builders are shying away from putting them up, even in urban areas, where they're often the most concentrated. Why?"
-----------
To put it bluntly, the answer is because growing income inequality makes it more attractive to build luxury homes for rich people, and because building cheap condos leads to construction defect litigation.
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Trump administration wants to sell National and Dulles airports, other assets across U.S. - The Washington Post
Trump administration wants to sell National and Dulles airports, other assets across U.S. - The Washington Post:
This kind of privatization amounts to selling off valuable public assets to rich investors. Trump and his cronies are strip-mining the public sector. Public lands and public infrastructure are set to be plundered by the 1%. Anything that can turn a profit will be lost to the public and converted to private ownership, put under a long-term lease, or subject to private extraction rights for mining, grazing, logging, etc.
This kind of privatization amounts to selling off valuable public assets to rich investors. Trump and his cronies are strip-mining the public sector. Public lands and public infrastructure are set to be plundered by the 1%. Anything that can turn a profit will be lost to the public and converted to private ownership, put under a long-term lease, or subject to private extraction rights for mining, grazing, logging, etc.
Bundy-backing Vegas councilwoman threatens critics at meeting: ‘If I hear a boo I will have marshals remove you!’
Bundy-backing Vegas councilwoman threatens critics at meeting: ‘If I hear a boo I will have marshals remove you!’
This is right-wing, gun-toting, Cliven Bundy supporter Michele Fiore again. The article says that she became angry after a citizen asked her why she was checking her phone during the meeting. As this article notes, she received some attention a while back, when she was running an HOA meeting and did the same thing. It's interesting that she considers herself a great advocate for freedom from tyrannical government, but when she is the one wielding power, she threatens people with arrest for disagreeing with her too vigorously for her taste. At the HOA meeting, "Fiore quickly ordered city marshals to remove someone who asked her a question about the sale, and a disabled veteran who lives nearby decided to start recording video on his phone."
This is right-wing, gun-toting, Cliven Bundy supporter Michele Fiore again. The article says that she became angry after a citizen asked her why she was checking her phone during the meeting. As this article notes, she received some attention a while back, when she was running an HOA meeting and did the same thing. It's interesting that she considers herself a great advocate for freedom from tyrannical government, but when she is the one wielding power, she threatens people with arrest for disagreeing with her too vigorously for her taste. At the HOA meeting, "Fiore quickly ordered city marshals to remove someone who asked her a question about the sale, and a disabled veteran who lives nearby decided to start recording video on his phone."
Monday, February 12, 2018
Trump unveils infrastructure plan: Here's what's in it - Feb. 11, 2018
Trump unveils infrastructure plan: Here's what's in it - Feb. 11, 2018:
You can read the whole thing if you want to, but it doesn't amount to much. Let me boil it down for you.
1. It claims to be a $1.5 trillion dollar federal infrastructure plan.
2. It isn't.
3. It proposes that the federal government would spend only $200 billion dollars, spread over ten years.
4. The rest of the money would magically appear from state, local and (of course) private sources, because...incentives!
5. The American Society of Civil Engineers says we need to spend $4.59 trillion in order to address our aging, inadequate, underperforming, and in some cases dangerous infrastructure.
6. So this proposal is ridiculous. Even if the federal government were actually putting $1.5 trillion to this purpose, it would be less than one-third of what is needed. To chip in $200 billion over a decade is a joke. And to expect cash-strapped state and local governments to pony up these sums is absurd.
7. As for the magic of the private market, all I can see here is the usual Republican smoke and mirrors. They want to sell off public assets (privatization), and create "incentives" for banks to lend and for vendors to do what government should be doing. 70% of the criyeria for obtaining federal funding is getting private money. "The evaluation criteria would be—
8. There is a fundamentally flawed assumption under all this. They always claim that private businesses, that are all about making profits, are going to do things that government has been doing. But the reason government did most of these things is that they are necessary, but not profitable, tasks. So as a general rule, private businesses don't take on such tasks, unless they can make a quick profit and then bail, or unless they can do "cream-skimming" and service only the affluent customers.
8. So if you like expensive toll roads and bridges and tunnels and trains and airports, all of which go to and from places affluent people want to go, then you may get something out of this plan.
9. But for the most part, this "plan" is a bust.
You can read the whole thing if you want to, but it doesn't amount to much. Let me boil it down for you.
1. It claims to be a $1.5 trillion dollar federal infrastructure plan.
2. It isn't.
3. It proposes that the federal government would spend only $200 billion dollars, spread over ten years.
4. The rest of the money would magically appear from state, local and (of course) private sources, because...incentives!
5. The American Society of Civil Engineers says we need to spend $4.59 trillion in order to address our aging, inadequate, underperforming, and in some cases dangerous infrastructure.
6. So this proposal is ridiculous. Even if the federal government were actually putting $1.5 trillion to this purpose, it would be less than one-third of what is needed. To chip in $200 billion over a decade is a joke. And to expect cash-strapped state and local governments to pony up these sums is absurd.
7. As for the magic of the private market, all I can see here is the usual Republican smoke and mirrors. They want to sell off public assets (privatization), and create "incentives" for banks to lend and for vendors to do what government should be doing. 70% of the criyeria for obtaining federal funding is getting private money. "The evaluation criteria would be—
o the dollar value of the project or program of projects (weighted at 10
percent);
o evidence supporting how the applicant will secure and commit new, non-
Federal revenue to create sustainable, long-term funding for infrastructure
investments (weighted at 50 percent);
o evidence supporting how the applicant will secure and commit new, non-
Federal revenue for operations, maintenance and rehabilitation (weighted
at 20 percent);
o updates to procurement policies and project delivery approaches to improve
efficiency in project delivery and operations (weighted at 10 percent);
o plans to incorporate new and evolving technologies (weighted at 5 percent);
and
o evidence supporting how the project will spur economic and social returns
on investment (weighted at 5 percent)."
percent);
o evidence supporting how the applicant will secure and commit new, non-
Federal revenue to create sustainable, long-term funding for infrastructure
investments (weighted at 50 percent);
o evidence supporting how the applicant will secure and commit new, non-
Federal revenue for operations, maintenance and rehabilitation (weighted
at 20 percent);
o updates to procurement policies and project delivery approaches to improve
efficiency in project delivery and operations (weighted at 10 percent);
o plans to incorporate new and evolving technologies (weighted at 5 percent);
and
o evidence supporting how the project will spur economic and social returns
on investment (weighted at 5 percent)."
8. There is a fundamentally flawed assumption under all this. They always claim that private businesses, that are all about making profits, are going to do things that government has been doing. But the reason government did most of these things is that they are necessary, but not profitable, tasks. So as a general rule, private businesses don't take on such tasks, unless they can make a quick profit and then bail, or unless they can do "cream-skimming" and service only the affluent customers.
8. So if you like expensive toll roads and bridges and tunnels and trains and airports, all of which go to and from places affluent people want to go, then you may get something out of this plan.
9. But for the most part, this "plan" is a bust.
Friday, February 09, 2018
Michigan governor admits his prison food privatization scheme has failed – ThinkProgress
Michigan governor admits his prison food privatization scheme has failed – ThinkProgress
Michigan voters elected this anti-government dunce. Ask people in Flint how that worked out for them. Now he has deprivatized the prison food service because privatization was such a disaster.
Michigan voters elected this anti-government dunce. Ask people in Flint how that worked out for them. Now he has deprivatized the prison food service because privatization was such a disaster.
Fake homeowners association files real liens on Northland neighborhood after fake bills go unpaid | FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports
Fake homeowners association files real liens on Northland neighborhood after fake bills go unpaid | FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports
"KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- For years, people living in a quiet neighborhood in the Northland ignored the invoices that arrived in their mail demanding payment to a homeowners association. “Just want to let you know it's a scam,” Tony Navarro said he was told when he moved to the Summerfield subdivision. “This is not an HOA neighborhood at all. There are no monthly fees.” But then, just before Christmas, a $445 lien was filed against Navarro’s home and more than 30 others. The reason? For not paying dues to the Summerfield Homeowners Association. An HOA that has no board and provides no services...We tried to talk to Lovell, but she wouldn’t even open the door of her home. Speaking behind a window, she told us she had no comment. Later Lovell’s attorney wrote to FOX4 that Lovell thought the neighborhood should have an HOA to pay for the upkeep of the lot containing the neighborhood’s drainage basin. FOX4 Problem Solvers found it surprising that Lovell cared since she lives in Independence -- far from the Summerfield neighborhood. We also wanted to speak to the other person behind the fake Summerfiled HOA, but he was even harder to reach. Al Roberts is in federal prison, convicted of $3 million in mortgage fraud. "
-----------
With local and state governments taking no responsibility for the conduct of CID private governments, there is all kinds of room for people to move into that vacuum. Fraud, embezzlement, association takeover, financial mismanagement--these things could be made less frequent with proper oversight.
"KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- For years, people living in a quiet neighborhood in the Northland ignored the invoices that arrived in their mail demanding payment to a homeowners association. “Just want to let you know it's a scam,” Tony Navarro said he was told when he moved to the Summerfield subdivision. “This is not an HOA neighborhood at all. There are no monthly fees.” But then, just before Christmas, a $445 lien was filed against Navarro’s home and more than 30 others. The reason? For not paying dues to the Summerfield Homeowners Association. An HOA that has no board and provides no services...We tried to talk to Lovell, but she wouldn’t even open the door of her home. Speaking behind a window, she told us she had no comment. Later Lovell’s attorney wrote to FOX4 that Lovell thought the neighborhood should have an HOA to pay for the upkeep of the lot containing the neighborhood’s drainage basin. FOX4 Problem Solvers found it surprising that Lovell cared since she lives in Independence -- far from the Summerfield neighborhood. We also wanted to speak to the other person behind the fake Summerfiled HOA, but he was even harder to reach. Al Roberts is in federal prison, convicted of $3 million in mortgage fraud. "
-----------
With local and state governments taking no responsibility for the conduct of CID private governments, there is all kinds of room for people to move into that vacuum. Fraud, embezzlement, association takeover, financial mismanagement--these things could be made less frequent with proper oversight.
Neighbors owe HOA thousands after missed payment - ABC15 Arizona
Neighbors owe HOA thousands after missed payment - ABC15 Arizona
"Scottsdale - Neighbors Ted Koch and Chad Lakridis don't know each other, but both have the same story. They live in the Desert Ridge Community Association which they both say is unfairly billing them thousands of dollars because of a $15 late fee."
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"Scottsdale - Neighbors Ted Koch and Chad Lakridis don't know each other, but both have the same story. They live in the Desert Ridge Community Association which they both say is unfairly billing them thousands of dollars because of a $15 late fee."
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The Michigan town where only Christians are allowed to buy houses | US news | The Guardian
The Michigan town where only Christians are allowed to buy houses | US news | The Guardian
"The Christian exclusionary component was introduced in the 1940s. This was a time of heightened racial anxiety and antisemitism in the US, with swaths of Jewish refugees denied asylum from Europe – an act supported by a majority of the American public. The Christian-only clause was introduced together with a white-only clause, which the association eliminated the following decade. Catholics were given a 10% quota, which was eventually dropped. Over the years, however, the Christian-only requirement was, if anything, reinforced. The lawsuit charges that Bay View Association, although private (some private entities including gentlemen’s clubs or the Boy Scouts, for example, historically have been able to discriminate), acts in effect as a governmental entity, endowed with the powers to police and enforce laws. As such, the lawsuit claims, it is engaging in religious discrimination in violation of the US and Michigan constitutions, Michigan’s civil rights act and the Fair Housing Act. Mike Steinberg, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, believes the lawsuit is an “open-and-shut case”.
---------------
Interesting case that raises the question of whether and under what circumstances a private organization should be treated as if it were a government. I will be following this.
"The Christian exclusionary component was introduced in the 1940s. This was a time of heightened racial anxiety and antisemitism in the US, with swaths of Jewish refugees denied asylum from Europe – an act supported by a majority of the American public. The Christian-only clause was introduced together with a white-only clause, which the association eliminated the following decade. Catholics were given a 10% quota, which was eventually dropped. Over the years, however, the Christian-only requirement was, if anything, reinforced. The lawsuit charges that Bay View Association, although private (some private entities including gentlemen’s clubs or the Boy Scouts, for example, historically have been able to discriminate), acts in effect as a governmental entity, endowed with the powers to police and enforce laws. As such, the lawsuit claims, it is engaging in religious discrimination in violation of the US and Michigan constitutions, Michigan’s civil rights act and the Fair Housing Act. Mike Steinberg, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, believes the lawsuit is an “open-and-shut case”.
---------------
Interesting case that raises the question of whether and under what circumstances a private organization should be treated as if it were a government. I will be following this.
Thursday, February 08, 2018
The biggest privatisation you’ve never heard of: land | Brett Christophers | Opinion | The Guardian
The biggest privatisation you’ve never heard of: land | Brett Christophers | Opinion | The Guardian:
"All told, around 2 million hectares of public land have been privatised during the past four decades. This amounts to an eye-watering 10% of the entire British land mass, and about half of all the land that was owned by public bodies when Thatcher assumed power. How much is the land that has been privatised in Britain worth? It is impossible to say for sure. But my conservative estimate, explained in my forthcoming book on this historic privatisation, called The New Enclosure, is somewhere in the region of £400bn in today’s prices. This dwarfs the value of all of Britain’s other, better known, and often bitterly contested, privatisations."
----------------
And what did we do here in the US? We quietly privatized a vast array of local government services, and effectively privatized the land, where CIDs are located.
"All told, around 2 million hectares of public land have been privatised during the past four decades. This amounts to an eye-watering 10% of the entire British land mass, and about half of all the land that was owned by public bodies when Thatcher assumed power. How much is the land that has been privatised in Britain worth? It is impossible to say for sure. But my conservative estimate, explained in my forthcoming book on this historic privatisation, called The New Enclosure, is somewhere in the region of £400bn in today’s prices. This dwarfs the value of all of Britain’s other, better known, and often bitterly contested, privatisations."
----------------
And what did we do here in the US? We quietly privatized a vast array of local government services, and effectively privatized the land, where CIDs are located.
Monday, February 05, 2018
When a Co-op Board Misbehaves - The New York Times
When a Co-op Board Misbehaves - The New York Times: "Ms. Liang and other shareholders have learned through their efforts that because there is no agency responsible for regulating co-op and condo board behavior, there is little recourse for shareholders if they believe a board is misbehaving, other than to take on the significant expense and time required to file a lawsuit."
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People keep discovering this for the first time.
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People keep discovering this for the first time.
Friday, February 02, 2018
Insurance Law Report: January 2018 - Phelps Dunbar LLP
Insurance Law Report: January 2018 - Phelps Dunbar LLP:
Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. He notes that it seems like the condo construction defect suit will always be with us. Why are there so many of these suits? I would say it flows from the dynamics and incentives of the real estate development industry.
1.The developers and general contractors all want to maximize profits, which means they all want to minimize costs. So there is always a temptation to cut corners on materials and workmanship. The same goes for the subcontractors in all the trades. Not everybody does this to the same degree, but that practice increases the risk of defects in original construction.
2. And then a great deal of the housing stock is, by definition, constructed during boom periods, when the supply of skilled labor is exhausted in the places where the most housing is going up. Relatively unskilled and inexperienced workers can find work easily.
3. Many of the people who build condos are thinking in terms of immediate profits from quick sales. Contrast this with somebody who builds an apartment complex and intends to draw income from it long-term.
4. There are condos at various ends of the price spectrum. The higher you go, the greater the expectation of quality. During the last housing boom, when the financing was so easy to get, there was a lot of condo housing constructed for people of low to moderate income. Some of that wasn't particularly well-built.
Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. He notes that it seems like the condo construction defect suit will always be with us. Why are there so many of these suits? I would say it flows from the dynamics and incentives of the real estate development industry.
1.The developers and general contractors all want to maximize profits, which means they all want to minimize costs. So there is always a temptation to cut corners on materials and workmanship. The same goes for the subcontractors in all the trades. Not everybody does this to the same degree, but that practice increases the risk of defects in original construction.
2. And then a great deal of the housing stock is, by definition, constructed during boom periods, when the supply of skilled labor is exhausted in the places where the most housing is going up. Relatively unskilled and inexperienced workers can find work easily.
3. Many of the people who build condos are thinking in terms of immediate profits from quick sales. Contrast this with somebody who builds an apartment complex and intends to draw income from it long-term.
4. There are condos at various ends of the price spectrum. The higher you go, the greater the expectation of quality. During the last housing boom, when the financing was so easy to get, there was a lot of condo housing constructed for people of low to moderate income. Some of that wasn't particularly well-built.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Monday, January 29, 2018
Is it all in the eye of the beholder? Benefits of living in mixed-income neighborhoods in New York and Los Angeles. – JUA Blog
Is it all in the eye of the beholder? Benefits of living in mixed-income neighborhoods in New York and Los Angeles. – JUA Blog
This is a blog post that summarizes an article in the Journal of Urban Affairs by my friend Renaud LeGoix, Elena Vesselinov, and Mary Clare Lennon. The article looks at mixed income neighborhoods and examines what they do and don't accomplish for their residents.
"In this article, we discuss the differences between “design-politics” and “organic” mixed-income neighborhoods. Design-politics neighborhoods are communities influenced by the federal housing policies in integrating former public housing residents with higher income groups. It is believed that such income integration will be beneficial to lower-income groups, where through better housing conditions and role-modeling they will create better lives. The question is do policy intentions correspond to reality, thus the title of the paper, “Is it all in the eye of the beholder?” Is this policy a wishful thinking or a reality?"
The full article is available free at this link.
This is a blog post that summarizes an article in the Journal of Urban Affairs by my friend Renaud LeGoix, Elena Vesselinov, and Mary Clare Lennon. The article looks at mixed income neighborhoods and examines what they do and don't accomplish for their residents.
"In this article, we discuss the differences between “design-politics” and “organic” mixed-income neighborhoods. Design-politics neighborhoods are communities influenced by the federal housing policies in integrating former public housing residents with higher income groups. It is believed that such income integration will be beneficial to lower-income groups, where through better housing conditions and role-modeling they will create better lives. The question is do policy intentions correspond to reality, thus the title of the paper, “Is it all in the eye of the beholder?” Is this policy a wishful thinking or a reality?"
The full article is available free at this link.
Saturday, January 20, 2018
"Privatization Is Bad," says British writer
Privatization Is Bad
"One of Britain’s largest government contractors, Carillion, announced bankruptcy on Tuesday, leaving its 20,000 UK employees unsure of their future and causing layoffs at its subcontractor. The company was £1.5 billion in debt. Whoops! The company is woven into basically every part of the public sector in Britain, from school meals and hospital cleaning to housing for the military."
-------------------
This article explains how the era of privatization brought about government dependency on private contractors, so that if and when a major contractor fails, government doesn't have the staff or the expertise to take over from the contractor. I see the same problem in the US. What happens when cities take a cash payment for a major public asset, such as a bridge or highway, and then the new owner or lessee goes bankrupt? That can also be a strategic bankruptcy, where the corporation doesn't want to put money into an asset to rehab it and decides instead to move their money elsewhere and liquidate the entity that owns or leases the asset. Or when the city happily lays off a lot of employees because they contracted out the public school food service, or he janitorial service, or the teaching, if the contractors don't get the job done? Or if they don't turn enough of a profit and just go out of business? The problem is that before privatization we could be sure that government would continue doing these things, and it doesn't matter whether those activities are profitable or not. After privatization, we don't know that. On the contrary, we know that private corporations do things only as long as they are making a profit. This is where all this nonsense about making government operate like a business comes back to bite us. Governments do things that, by definition, don't turn a profit. When we turn those things over to private corporations, we run the risk that the corporations will bail out on us, and then government has lost the ability to pick up the function without a lot of lost time and extra expense.
And, as this article notes, that profit-seeking creates other problems. Bizarrely, governments end up paying private vendors extra money because of guarantees that are written into their contracts. This has been a huge problem with the Chicago parking meter privatization fiasco. It happened in the UK, too: "This is what happens when you outsource what should be government services, and particularly when you outsource so much to one company: you introduce the likelihood of a whole new kind of total fucking disaster, where the terrible, risky, profit-driven practices that characterize the private sector get mixed in with services that absolutely should not be subjected to that kind of risk, like schools and hospitals. Introducing a profit element to public services can only end in corner-cutting, under-providing and over-charging, and spending more than you would if the government just did it themselves. You end up with a ridiculous situation, where, for instance, Britain’s public health service, which is already underfunded, pays an £82 million settlement to a private company who sued because they didn’t win a contract."
"One of Britain’s largest government contractors, Carillion, announced bankruptcy on Tuesday, leaving its 20,000 UK employees unsure of their future and causing layoffs at its subcontractor. The company was £1.5 billion in debt. Whoops! The company is woven into basically every part of the public sector in Britain, from school meals and hospital cleaning to housing for the military."
-------------------
This article explains how the era of privatization brought about government dependency on private contractors, so that if and when a major contractor fails, government doesn't have the staff or the expertise to take over from the contractor. I see the same problem in the US. What happens when cities take a cash payment for a major public asset, such as a bridge or highway, and then the new owner or lessee goes bankrupt? That can also be a strategic bankruptcy, where the corporation doesn't want to put money into an asset to rehab it and decides instead to move their money elsewhere and liquidate the entity that owns or leases the asset. Or when the city happily lays off a lot of employees because they contracted out the public school food service, or he janitorial service, or the teaching, if the contractors don't get the job done? Or if they don't turn enough of a profit and just go out of business? The problem is that before privatization we could be sure that government would continue doing these things, and it doesn't matter whether those activities are profitable or not. After privatization, we don't know that. On the contrary, we know that private corporations do things only as long as they are making a profit. This is where all this nonsense about making government operate like a business comes back to bite us. Governments do things that, by definition, don't turn a profit. When we turn those things over to private corporations, we run the risk that the corporations will bail out on us, and then government has lost the ability to pick up the function without a lot of lost time and extra expense.
And, as this article notes, that profit-seeking creates other problems. Bizarrely, governments end up paying private vendors extra money because of guarantees that are written into their contracts. This has been a huge problem with the Chicago parking meter privatization fiasco. It happened in the UK, too: "This is what happens when you outsource what should be government services, and particularly when you outsource so much to one company: you introduce the likelihood of a whole new kind of total fucking disaster, where the terrible, risky, profit-driven practices that characterize the private sector get mixed in with services that absolutely should not be subjected to that kind of risk, like schools and hospitals. Introducing a profit element to public services can only end in corner-cutting, under-providing and over-charging, and spending more than you would if the government just did it themselves. You end up with a ridiculous situation, where, for instance, Britain’s public health service, which is already underfunded, pays an £82 million settlement to a private company who sued because they didn’t win a contract."
Friday, January 19, 2018
Money man: U.S. billionaire Robert Mercer helped Trump win the presidency — but what does he really want?
Money man: U.S. billionaire Robert Mercer helped Trump win the presidency — but what does he really want?: "“The ultra-wealthy of today differ from the ultra-wealthy in past eras in that they have, a lot of them, no stake in the infrastructure of society,” Magerman said. He’s seen that their wealth does not depend on the health and stability of the country. In fact, they get rich on volatility and instability."
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This is one of the main arguments I made in my first book on the rise of private communities. The rich now have their own parallel state of private institutions, and that's where they live, and many of them are like Mercer--they believe that they don't need public government, and everybody who isn't rich is a parasite. They believe that government is just a way for the parasitic many to steal from the productive few. The notion that ordinary people are working their butts off to generate surplus value for the Mercers of the world is lost on them.
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This is one of the main arguments I made in my first book on the rise of private communities. The rich now have their own parallel state of private institutions, and that's where they live, and many of them are like Mercer--they believe that they don't need public government, and everybody who isn't rich is a parasite. They believe that government is just a way for the parasitic many to steal from the productive few. The notion that ordinary people are working their butts off to generate surplus value for the Mercers of the world is lost on them.
Gated communities stepping up security after violent trail of crime alleged on Spring murder suspects | abc13.com
Gated communities stepping up security after violent trail of crime alleged on Spring murder suspects | abc13.com
SPRING, Texas (KTRK) -- Gated communities are increasing security after two violent home invasions and one that ended in the murders of a beloved Spring couple. Jenny and Bao Lam, both 61, were ambushed in their garage in the Northgate Forest subdivision last week. The three suspects - Khari Kendrick, Aakiel Kendrick and Erick Peralta - then robbed, tortured and shot them to death, according to Harris County Sheriff's investigators. All three have been charged with capital murder. Two days earlier, authorities believe they were in the Champion Lakes Estates community near Tomball...One suspect got into the neighborhood, despite the front gate, on foot. He then looked for an open garage door and caught the male victim off guard. Once inside, he forced the victim to give him the gate code to get his alleged accomplices and their car inside."
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Horrible story. It shows how little security is provided in many gated communities. Gates along don't do much to protect residents from people who are determined to get in.
SPRING, Texas (KTRK) -- Gated communities are increasing security after two violent home invasions and one that ended in the murders of a beloved Spring couple. Jenny and Bao Lam, both 61, were ambushed in their garage in the Northgate Forest subdivision last week. The three suspects - Khari Kendrick, Aakiel Kendrick and Erick Peralta - then robbed, tortured and shot them to death, according to Harris County Sheriff's investigators. All three have been charged with capital murder. Two days earlier, authorities believe they were in the Champion Lakes Estates community near Tomball...One suspect got into the neighborhood, despite the front gate, on foot. He then looked for an open garage door and caught the male victim off guard. Once inside, he forced the victim to give him the gate code to get his alleged accomplices and their car inside."
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Horrible story. It shows how little security is provided in many gated communities. Gates along don't do much to protect residents from people who are determined to get in.
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Amazon shortlists 20 cities for second headquarters | Technology | The Guardian
Amazon shortlists 20 cities for second headquarters | Technology | The Guardian:
Chicago is on the short list. But it is embarrassing to see how some of these cities prostrated themselves before the great God Amazon: "Amazon has claimed its new $5bn headquarters will create 50,000 new jobs and the prospect of securing its favour set off an aggressive charm offensive with cities offering huge tax breaks and even sending gifts, including a giant cactus, to attract the company’s attention. Calgary in Canada offered to change its name to Calmazon or Amagary if it won and a local business group offered to fight a bear to win Amazon’s approval. It did not make the list."
Chicago is on the short list. But it is embarrassing to see how some of these cities prostrated themselves before the great God Amazon: "Amazon has claimed its new $5bn headquarters will create 50,000 new jobs and the prospect of securing its favour set off an aggressive charm offensive with cities offering huge tax breaks and even sending gifts, including a giant cactus, to attract the company’s attention. Calgary in Canada offered to change its name to Calmazon or Amagary if it won and a local business group offered to fight a bear to win Amazon’s approval. It did not make the list."
The Privatization Agenda Goes Bust
The Privatization Agenda Goes Bust: "The collapse of Carillion, the mammoth UK government contractor that went bankrupt Monday, was wholly made in Britain, although it has negative consequences internationally.
The reason for Carillion’s bankruptcy, which puts vital public services and thousands of jobs at risk, is that the firm and its component companies grew fat during the first phase of neoliberal economic policy and could not cope with the more recent phase, austerity."
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The record of privatization, after close to 40 years of evaluation, is mixed at best, but it has been profitable for contractors. However, most of those studies are from the pre-2008 era. This article suggests that in the post-2008 environment, austerity policies have put government on a starvation diet. If government doesn't have the money to pay for construction and repair of infrastructure and provision of services, then firms that want to perform those tasks on a privatized contractual basis are in trouble.
The reason for Carillion’s bankruptcy, which puts vital public services and thousands of jobs at risk, is that the firm and its component companies grew fat during the first phase of neoliberal economic policy and could not cope with the more recent phase, austerity."
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The record of privatization, after close to 40 years of evaluation, is mixed at best, but it has been profitable for contractors. However, most of those studies are from the pre-2008 era. This article suggests that in the post-2008 environment, austerity policies have put government on a starvation diet. If government doesn't have the money to pay for construction and repair of infrastructure and provision of services, then firms that want to perform those tasks on a privatized contractual basis are in trouble.
San Rafael condo owners hit with $145,000 special assessment
San Rafael condo owners hit with $145,000 special assessment
"Members of the 36-unit Pinnacle Condominium Association in San Rafael have approved a special assessment that will result in each condo owner having to pay $145,000 to fund a $5.22 million exterior repair project. “That is a major special assessment for a building this size,” said Marjorie Murray, president of the Center for California Homeowner Association Law in Oakland, a clearinghouse for consumer education and referral services for the estimated 9 million California homeowners who now live in a common interest development."
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This is a long and detailed article about a terrible situation in an old development, built in 1980, that now needs new siding and roof decks. The assessment received 18 "yes" votes. The problem here is that no condo development, no HOA, should ever find itself in the situation of needing a massive special assessment to fund repairs for major building components that have just worn out over time. Boards are supposed to make sure that monthly assessments over decades include enough of a contribution to reserve funds that, when the time comes for a new roof or siding or decks, it is affordable without a six-figure special assessment. As Marjorie Murray, president of the Center for California Homeowner Association Law, put it, “Homeowner associations are required by law to do reserve studies every three years to determine how much they should be saving for capital items like roofs and building infrastructure,” Murray said. “The idea is that boards should plan ahead and save in reserves so that special assessments aren’t necessary.”
And there are reserves, to the tune of $800,000. That won't fund a $5 million repair, but Marjorie also questions why the association has decided to use only $300,000 of their reserves.
There are other questions raised in the article, such as whether this repair plan is the only way to go, and whether the association should get more opinions and try to reduce the cost. But it still comes down to the fact that the reserves are too low to pay for repairs to an old building, and the unwillingness of today's owners to reserve enough money now to pay for future repairs that will benefit future owners. Attorney Tyler Berding has been talking about this problem forever. I have been saying for years that condominium housing demands more from the financial and social resources of owners than many, even most, of them are prepared to deliver. Here you have Exhibit A. In order for this form of housing to function in the long term, and to avoid catastrophic special assessments that drive people into debt or out of their homes, there needs to be government financial oversight of all condominium associations. Stricter reserve study requirements, agency oversight, and mandatory public disclosure of reserve funding levels need to be considered.
"Members of the 36-unit Pinnacle Condominium Association in San Rafael have approved a special assessment that will result in each condo owner having to pay $145,000 to fund a $5.22 million exterior repair project. “That is a major special assessment for a building this size,” said Marjorie Murray, president of the Center for California Homeowner Association Law in Oakland, a clearinghouse for consumer education and referral services for the estimated 9 million California homeowners who now live in a common interest development."
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This is a long and detailed article about a terrible situation in an old development, built in 1980, that now needs new siding and roof decks. The assessment received 18 "yes" votes. The problem here is that no condo development, no HOA, should ever find itself in the situation of needing a massive special assessment to fund repairs for major building components that have just worn out over time. Boards are supposed to make sure that monthly assessments over decades include enough of a contribution to reserve funds that, when the time comes for a new roof or siding or decks, it is affordable without a six-figure special assessment. As Marjorie Murray, president of the Center for California Homeowner Association Law, put it, “Homeowner associations are required by law to do reserve studies every three years to determine how much they should be saving for capital items like roofs and building infrastructure,” Murray said. “The idea is that boards should plan ahead and save in reserves so that special assessments aren’t necessary.”
And there are reserves, to the tune of $800,000. That won't fund a $5 million repair, but Marjorie also questions why the association has decided to use only $300,000 of their reserves.
There are other questions raised in the article, such as whether this repair plan is the only way to go, and whether the association should get more opinions and try to reduce the cost. But it still comes down to the fact that the reserves are too low to pay for repairs to an old building, and the unwillingness of today's owners to reserve enough money now to pay for future repairs that will benefit future owners. Attorney Tyler Berding has been talking about this problem forever. I have been saying for years that condominium housing demands more from the financial and social resources of owners than many, even most, of them are prepared to deliver. Here you have Exhibit A. In order for this form of housing to function in the long term, and to avoid catastrophic special assessments that drive people into debt or out of their homes, there needs to be government financial oversight of all condominium associations. Stricter reserve study requirements, agency oversight, and mandatory public disclosure of reserve funding levels need to be considered.
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Rent or own? The affordability conundrum
Rent or own? The affordability conundrum: "ATTOM Data Solutions reports that 64 percent of Americans now live in places — mostly big metro areas on the East and West coasts — where it is more affordable to rent than own. That means the monthly cost of a mortgage, mortgage interest, insurance and property taxes on a median-priced home in the area will eat up a larger percentage of the average monthly wage there than paying rent on a typical three-bedroom apartment."
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It isn't just the the cities on both coasts. The same is true of Chicago, as well as Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Denver, and Austin. The reason is that in all these places, housing prices have inflated.
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It isn't just the the cities on both coasts. The same is true of Chicago, as well as Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Denver, and Austin. The reason is that in all these places, housing prices have inflated.
The Rise of the Backyard 'Granny Flat' - CityLab
The Rise of the Backyard 'Granny Flat' - CityLab
Yet another good idea that HOAs probably won't allow.
Yet another good idea that HOAs probably won't allow.
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
Can Government Officials Have You Arrested for Speaking to Them? - The Atlantic
Can Government Officials Have You Arrested for Speaking to Them? - The Atlantic
The US Supreme Court has this issue before them. HOA and condo board members aren't government officials, but it will be interesting to watch this case.
The US Supreme Court has this issue before them. HOA and condo board members aren't government officials, but it will be interesting to watch this case.
It's Becoming Increasingly Hard For California Homeowners To Get Insurance : NPR
It's Becoming Increasingly Hard For California Homeowners To Get Insurance : NPR
"Insurance companies are increasingly dropping homeowners in California because of wildfire risk. There's concern the problem will grow worse after this year's destructive fire season."
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Insurance companies have freaked out about property insurance risks in California in years past. Fires, floods, 100-year storms, landslides earthquakes--these events are hard to build into their premium calculations. But homeowners need property insurance, so we shall see what the state legislature has to say about this.
"Insurance companies are increasingly dropping homeowners in California because of wildfire risk. There's concern the problem will grow worse after this year's destructive fire season."
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Insurance companies have freaked out about property insurance risks in California in years past. Fires, floods, 100-year storms, landslides earthquakes--these events are hard to build into their premium calculations. But homeowners need property insurance, so we shall see what the state legislature has to say about this.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Trump's Infrastructure Plan Is Actually Pence's—And It's All About Privatization
Trump's Infrastructure Plan Is Actually Pence's—And It's All About Privatization
"Pence and his allies like to boast about how Indiana sold control of major roads to private firms, claiming the move prompted corporations to invest money in infrastructure that would otherwise have been funded by taxpayers. But opponents say Indiana made some bad deals that offer a cautionary tale of get-rich-quick scheming, secrecy and cronyism that led the state to sell off valuable assets that were then wildly mismanaged."
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This "plan" probably will not lead to construction or maintenance of essential public infrastructure. It is more likely to foster a series of boondoggles in which state and local governments sell off valuable public assets--highways, bridges, etc.--to corporations that will strip them of their value for quick profits
"Pence and his allies like to boast about how Indiana sold control of major roads to private firms, claiming the move prompted corporations to invest money in infrastructure that would otherwise have been funded by taxpayers. But opponents say Indiana made some bad deals that offer a cautionary tale of get-rich-quick scheming, secrecy and cronyism that led the state to sell off valuable assets that were then wildly mismanaged."
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This "plan" probably will not lead to construction or maintenance of essential public infrastructure. It is more likely to foster a series of boondoggles in which state and local governments sell off valuable public assets--highways, bridges, etc.--to corporations that will strip them of their value for quick profits
Affordable housing bills signed by Gov. Jerry Brown | The Sacramento Bee
Affordable housing bills signed by Gov. Jerry Brown | The Sacramento Bee
"Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday signed a robust package of housing legislation aimed at addressing California’s unprecedented affordability crisis."
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This article is from a few months ago, but I think these bills just went into effect. Across much if not most of California, housing is absurdly expensive. In major cities, San Francisco being the most dramatic example, middle class families can't afford to buy a home, and rents are absurdly high. The term "gentrification" doesn't even begin to describe it, because even people who would be considered gentrifiers in Chicago or Atlanta can't buy a home in San Francisco. Similar but somewhat less serious problems exist elsewhere. Median home prices in California are approaching $550,000. There are other problems that spin off from this, such as homelessness, traffic congestion and air pollution resulting from long commutes to work, and segregation by income and wealth. California is beginning to address their affordability crisis, but I think it will be a long and difficult process. Of course, condominium and HOA-run housing were intended to make housing more affordable by increasing density. But now CIDs are so ubiquitous that probably that solution has exhausted itself. Virtually all new housing in California is in CIDs already, and prices are still sky-high. Here's an article from last June, where they note that the average condo in San Francisco now sells for $1.2 million, and "For even more perspective, down in Los Angeles—hardly a cheap place to live in its own right—the California Association of Realtors estimates that the average home (house or condo) cost around $480,000 in April. In Orange County it was $775,000. In Santa Cruz, $815,000. But in San Francisco: $1.4 million for a house or condo, very close to Paragon’s own figure and nearly double some of the record highs everywhere else."
Tuesday, January 09, 2018
It’s so hot in Australia that bats’ brains are frying - The Washington Post
It’s so hot in Australia that bats’ brains are frying - The Washington Post: "In Sydney, temperatures hit 117 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday, the hottest it has been since 1939."
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While Republicans in the US make the ridiculous claim that cold weather in the winter here means that there is no global warming, there is a heat wave in Australia that is killing bats by the hundreds. Koalas have to be sprayed with water to keep them cool. Asphalt roads are melting.
And of course, extremely cold weather is also evidence of global warming, because it means that the jet stream is losing its ability to hold Arctic air near the North Pole, where it belongs. So, when it gets so cold in Florida that iguanas are falling out of trees, that is consistent with the patterns of extreme weather that climate scientists have been predicting for years. There is also increasing evidence that the Gulf Stream may be slowing. And of course the Arctic is melting.
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While Republicans in the US make the ridiculous claim that cold weather in the winter here means that there is no global warming, there is a heat wave in Australia that is killing bats by the hundreds. Koalas have to be sprayed with water to keep them cool. Asphalt roads are melting.
And of course, extremely cold weather is also evidence of global warming, because it means that the jet stream is losing its ability to hold Arctic air near the North Pole, where it belongs. So, when it gets so cold in Florida that iguanas are falling out of trees, that is consistent with the patterns of extreme weather that climate scientists have been predicting for years. There is also increasing evidence that the Gulf Stream may be slowing. And of course the Arctic is melting.
Johannesburg's gated communities echo apartheid-era segregation in South Africa — Quartz
Johannesburg's gated communities echo apartheid-era segregation in South Africa — Quartz:
"In order to gain access to an unremarkable suburban road, South Africans have become accustomed to parting with their most personal details. At barriers erected across public roads, people who want to cross into this protected zone fill in their name, surname, cellphone, identity and car registration numbers, and then the exact time of their entry.
The law says they don’t have to when driving on a public road, but most people don’t give a second thought to handing over data in exchange for a sense of personal security in a city like Johannesburg with a reputation for high contact crimes, like murder and robbery.
This payoff, however, has created pockets of development—ranging from middle class suburbia to opulence—walled off from South Africa’s socio-economic reality. It has not only exacerbated inequality by making those beyond the wall invisible, gated communities show how short South Africans’ memory is about restricting the movement of the disenfranchised."
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Gated private communities are 15% of the real estate market in Gauteng, which is the area around Johannesburg and Pretoria. Half the gated communities in South Africa are in Gauteng. Obviously South Africa has a long and loathsome history of racial oppression by the white minority, and now that legal Apartheid is in the past, new forms of segregation have become prevalent.
"In order to gain access to an unremarkable suburban road, South Africans have become accustomed to parting with their most personal details. At barriers erected across public roads, people who want to cross into this protected zone fill in their name, surname, cellphone, identity and car registration numbers, and then the exact time of their entry.
The law says they don’t have to when driving on a public road, but most people don’t give a second thought to handing over data in exchange for a sense of personal security in a city like Johannesburg with a reputation for high contact crimes, like murder and robbery.
This payoff, however, has created pockets of development—ranging from middle class suburbia to opulence—walled off from South Africa’s socio-economic reality. It has not only exacerbated inequality by making those beyond the wall invisible, gated communities show how short South Africans’ memory is about restricting the movement of the disenfranchised."
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Gated private communities are 15% of the real estate market in Gauteng, which is the area around Johannesburg and Pretoria. Half the gated communities in South Africa are in Gauteng. Obviously South Africa has a long and loathsome history of racial oppression by the white minority, and now that legal Apartheid is in the past, new forms of segregation have become prevalent.
Monday, January 08, 2018
Veteran says HOA won't allow him to fly American, Marine Corps...
Veteran says HOA won't allow him to fly American, Marine Corps...:
And the homeowner waxes poetic about his flags, except that this dispute isn't about flags--it is about flagpoles. I think that is pretty clear, but local media love this "HOAs hate the American flag" meme, so they make that the headline and the first paragraph. So here's what the association says:
"In this particular case the homeowner installed two 20-foot flagpoles on both sides of his driveway (one on each side) without first submitting the plans or seeking approval. The problem is that oneof the poles is in a utility easement, both poles are within the 25-foot building setback line and the restrictions (and Texas Property Code) only allow for the installation of one flagpole. We have already reached out to the veteran to let him know that the issue is not the flags and are awaiting a response. We are certainly willing to continue to work with this veteran in relocating one of his poles and would be remiss if we did not take this opportunity to thank him for his personal sacrifice and service to our country."
And the homeowner waxes poetic about his flags, except that this dispute isn't about flags--it is about flagpoles. I think that is pretty clear, but local media love this "HOAs hate the American flag" meme, so they make that the headline and the first paragraph. So here's what the association says:
"In this particular case the homeowner installed two 20-foot flagpoles on both sides of his driveway (one on each side) without first submitting the plans or seeking approval. The problem is that oneof the poles is in a utility easement, both poles are within the 25-foot building setback line and the restrictions (and Texas Property Code) only allow for the installation of one flagpole. We have already reached out to the veteran to let him know that the issue is not the flags and are awaiting a response. We are certainly willing to continue to work with this veteran in relocating one of his poles and would be remiss if we did not take this opportunity to thank him for his personal sacrifice and service to our country."
Auburn Community Upset after HOA Tells Them to Leave Garage Doors Open | FOX40
Auburn Community Upset after HOA Tells Them to Leave Garage Doors Open | FOX40:
"AUBURN, Calif. — Residents in a community in California are being forced to open their garage doors during the day. KXTL reports the neighborhood’s homeowner’s association said residents need to keep their garage doors up from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The policy started after one homeowner was caught allowing people to live in his garage. Many residents say they’re afraid to leave their belongings out in the open, and they’re rather have their garages inspected. Residents who don’t follow the new law will have to pay a $200 fee."
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OK, I thought I'd seen or heard it all, but this is a new one on me. Good grief.
"AUBURN, Calif. — Residents in a community in California are being forced to open their garage doors during the day. KXTL reports the neighborhood’s homeowner’s association said residents need to keep their garage doors up from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The policy started after one homeowner was caught allowing people to live in his garage. Many residents say they’re afraid to leave their belongings out in the open, and they’re rather have their garages inspected. Residents who don’t follow the new law will have to pay a $200 fee."
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OK, I thought I'd seen or heard it all, but this is a new one on me. Good grief.
Saturday, January 06, 2018
Longtime L.A. Times contributor Donie Vanitzian remembered as champion of homeowner rights – LA Times
Longtime L.A. Times contributor Donie Vanitzian remembered as champion of homeowner rights – LA Times
This is an awful tragedy and a terrible loss. Donie Vanitzian was a great champion of homeowner rights, co-author of two books on common interest housing, and a long-time columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Her column on HOA and condo issues has been running since 2001.
It appears from the stories that she was killed by her husband, who has been charged with her murder.
This is an awful tragedy and a terrible loss. Donie Vanitzian was a great champion of homeowner rights, co-author of two books on common interest housing, and a long-time columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Her column on HOA and condo issues has been running since 2001.
It appears from the stories that she was killed by her husband, who has been charged with her murder.
Sunday, December 31, 2017
What Happens When the Richest U.S. Cities Turn to the World? - The New York Times
What Happens When the Richest U.S. Cities Turn to the World? - The New York Times
"What happens to America’s manufacturing heartland when Silicon Valley turns to China? Where do former mill and mining towns fit in when big cities shift to digital work? How does upstate New York benefit when New York City increases business with Tokyo? The answers have social and political implications at a time when broad swaths of the country feel alienated from and resentful of “elite” cities that appear from a distance to have gone unscathed by the forces hollowing out smaller communities. To the extent that many Americans believe they’re disconnected from the prosperity in these major metros — even as they use the apps and services created there — perhaps they’re right."
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What happens to America's small cities when the big cities don't need them anymore, because they are now playing in a global economy?
"What happens to America’s manufacturing heartland when Silicon Valley turns to China? Where do former mill and mining towns fit in when big cities shift to digital work? How does upstate New York benefit when New York City increases business with Tokyo? The answers have social and political implications at a time when broad swaths of the country feel alienated from and resentful of “elite” cities that appear from a distance to have gone unscathed by the forces hollowing out smaller communities. To the extent that many Americans believe they’re disconnected from the prosperity in these major metros — even as they use the apps and services created there — perhaps they’re right."
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What happens to America's small cities when the big cities don't need them anymore, because they are now playing in a global economy?
Monday, December 25, 2017
Homeowners association demands 'Jesus' sign be taken down | WHP
Homeowners association demands 'Jesus' sign be taken down | WHP
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (WHP) - A homeowners association in Gettysburg is demanding that a sign that says "Jesus" be taken down. The homeowners association responded to the sign after a complaint was filed about the homemade display in the front yard of Lynn and Mark Wivell's home, saying it was "offensive." In an email to the Wivells, the homeowners association claimed the sign "wasn't in accordance with normal Christmas decorations" and asked them to remove it.
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Cue the outrage. It may be Jesus this time, but it's the same issue all the time, and it unfolds basically the same way. People move into an HOA that has restrictions on signs and other outdoor displays and structures. Then they erect something in the yard or on the house that breaks the rules, claiming their home is their castle. Somebody complains and the association reacts by demanding compliance with the rules. Then the outraged owner calls the local media, and this story is the result. The ensuing debate is all about the merits of whatever was prohibited: Jesus, Christmas lights, political signs, flags, whatever. The cry goes up, "What do you have against Jesus?" Or the American flag. Or the anti-Trump sign. The HOA and their attorney explain that they are just enforcing the rules that apply to everybody. Often the HOA backs down in the face of negative media portrayals. Sometimes they don't, and generally that means the HOA will prevail and the owner will end up liable for the association's attorney fees.
Behind all the surface outrage, the core issue is the legitimacy of private land use restrictions. Many people think they should be able to ignore them, and they don't think they should have to do what their HOA tells them to do. And local media outlets have this basic story in a template that they can run by filling in the blanks. In the meantime, the most important issues facing most HOAs and condo associations are financial.
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (WHP) - A homeowners association in Gettysburg is demanding that a sign that says "Jesus" be taken down. The homeowners association responded to the sign after a complaint was filed about the homemade display in the front yard of Lynn and Mark Wivell's home, saying it was "offensive." In an email to the Wivells, the homeowners association claimed the sign "wasn't in accordance with normal Christmas decorations" and asked them to remove it.
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Cue the outrage. It may be Jesus this time, but it's the same issue all the time, and it unfolds basically the same way. People move into an HOA that has restrictions on signs and other outdoor displays and structures. Then they erect something in the yard or on the house that breaks the rules, claiming their home is their castle. Somebody complains and the association reacts by demanding compliance with the rules. Then the outraged owner calls the local media, and this story is the result. The ensuing debate is all about the merits of whatever was prohibited: Jesus, Christmas lights, political signs, flags, whatever. The cry goes up, "What do you have against Jesus?" Or the American flag. Or the anti-Trump sign. The HOA and their attorney explain that they are just enforcing the rules that apply to everybody. Often the HOA backs down in the face of negative media portrayals. Sometimes they don't, and generally that means the HOA will prevail and the owner will end up liable for the association's attorney fees.
Behind all the surface outrage, the core issue is the legitimacy of private land use restrictions. Many people think they should be able to ignore them, and they don't think they should have to do what their HOA tells them to do. And local media outlets have this basic story in a template that they can run by filling in the blanks. In the meantime, the most important issues facing most HOAs and condo associations are financial.
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
The Next Crisis for Puerto Rico: A Crush of Foreclosures - The New York Times
The Next Crisis for Puerto Rico: A Crush of Foreclosures - The New York Times
"First came a brutal 10-year recession and financial crisis that drove businesses from this island and left 44 percent of the population impoverished. Then, in September, Hurricane Maria, a powerful Category 4 storm, shredded buildings, wrecked the electrical power grid and possibly led to more than 1,000 deaths. Now Puerto Rico is bracing for another blow: a housing meltdown that could far surpass the worst of the foreclosure crisis that devastated Phoenix, Las Vegas, Southern California and South Florida in the past decade. If the current numbers hold, Puerto Rico is headed for a foreclosure epidemic that could rival what happened in Detroit, where abandoned homes became almost as plentiful as occupied ones. About one-third of the island’s 425,000 homeowners are behind on their mortgage payments to banks and Wall Street firms that previously bought up distressed mortgages. Tens of thousands have not made payments for months. Some 90,000 borrowers became delinquent as a consequence of Hurricane Maria, according to Black Knight Inc., a data firm formerly known as Black Knight Financial Services."
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The hedge funds, investment banks, and real estate syndicates are already moving in to buy up these distressed properties. A lot of this is condominium housing.
"First came a brutal 10-year recession and financial crisis that drove businesses from this island and left 44 percent of the population impoverished. Then, in September, Hurricane Maria, a powerful Category 4 storm, shredded buildings, wrecked the electrical power grid and possibly led to more than 1,000 deaths. Now Puerto Rico is bracing for another blow: a housing meltdown that could far surpass the worst of the foreclosure crisis that devastated Phoenix, Las Vegas, Southern California and South Florida in the past decade. If the current numbers hold, Puerto Rico is headed for a foreclosure epidemic that could rival what happened in Detroit, where abandoned homes became almost as plentiful as occupied ones. About one-third of the island’s 425,000 homeowners are behind on their mortgage payments to banks and Wall Street firms that previously bought up distressed mortgages. Tens of thousands have not made payments for months. Some 90,000 borrowers became delinquent as a consequence of Hurricane Maria, according to Black Knight Inc., a data firm formerly known as Black Knight Financial Services."
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The hedge funds, investment banks, and real estate syndicates are already moving in to buy up these distressed properties. A lot of this is condominium housing.
Monday, December 18, 2017
Rahm Emanuel's infrastructure trust: Is it a bust?
Rahm Emanuel's infrastructure trust: Is it a bust?: "The bold idea was that private financing could be found for much-needed, big-ticket improvements for the city, making it possible to get more of them done sooner and sparing taxpayers from having to foot the bills. City Hall says that still can happen.
But the infrastructure trust has fallen short of the expectations the mayor laid out. It has yet to raise a dime in private financing for a single public works project, records show. At the same time, it has cost Chicago taxpayers more than $5.1 million to pay for its handful of employees, offices on Wacker Drive, consulting fees and other expenses."
'via Blog this'
But the infrastructure trust has fallen short of the expectations the mayor laid out. It has yet to raise a dime in private financing for a single public works project, records show. At the same time, it has cost Chicago taxpayers more than $5.1 million to pay for its handful of employees, offices on Wacker Drive, consulting fees and other expenses."
'via Blog this'
Investigation: Emanuel's Chicago Infrastructure Trust has cost taxpayers $5 million but has contributed little, and other news | Bleader
Investigation: Emanuel's Chicago Infrastructure Trust has cost taxpayers $5 million but has contributed little, and other news | Bleader: "Mayor Rahm Emanuel launched the nonprofit Chicago Infrastructure Trust in 2012 with the promise of finding private investors to fund public infrastructure improvement projects. But the trust has cost Chicago taxpayers more than $5.1 million in administrative costs and salaries without raising any money, the Sun-Times reports. And it's accomplished little beyond assisting the city in choosing contractors for streetlight upgrades and the $95 million police and fire training academy. "There's no excuse for the mayor to avoid closing down this thing that's been a complete failure," a high-ranking Chicago official told the Sun-Times. "They've done nothing that can't be done by [the Department of Fleet and Facilities Management] or the Public Building Commission.""
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
How the American government slowly became a business | Jon Michaels | Opinion | The Guardian
How the American government slowly became a business | Jon Michaels | Opinion | The Guardian
"To be sure, gated communities and corporate conglomerates have their charms. And so does businesslike government. It promises to be faster, more innovative, cheaper, and more “customer” friendly – and that no doubt sounds appealing to any number of us who have endured long lines at the DMV or who have otherwise experienced wasteful, sclerotic, or simply apathetic government. But even assuming that those promises can be kept (a big if), there is good reason not to embrace privatized, commercialized government."
"To be sure, gated communities and corporate conglomerates have their charms. And so does businesslike government. It promises to be faster, more innovative, cheaper, and more “customer” friendly – and that no doubt sounds appealing to any number of us who have endured long lines at the DMV or who have otherwise experienced wasteful, sclerotic, or simply apathetic government. But even assuming that those promises can be kept (a big if), there is good reason not to embrace privatized, commercialized government."
Thursday, December 14, 2017
Parking problem pits neighbor against neighbor in HOA battle | WFLA.com
Parking problem pits neighbor against neighbor in HOA battle | WFLA.com
"HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – When you drive through the Kings Lake subdivision in southern Hillsborough County, you may notice nice homes, well-kept yard and cars parked at odd angles across driveways.The strangely parked cars are the result of an ongoing battle between residents and the Homeowners Association."
Friday, December 08, 2017
What Happened to the American Boomtown? - The New York Times
What Happened to the American Boomtown? - The New York Times: "Interstate mobility nationwide has slowed over the last 30 years. But, more specifically and of greater concern, migration has stalled in the very places with the most opportunity...The places that are booming in size aren’t the economic boomtowns — the regions with the greatest prosperity and highest productivity. In theory, we’d expect those metros, like the Bay Area, Boston and New York, to be rapidly expanding, as people move from regions with high unemployment and meager wages to those with high salaries and strong job markets. That we’re not seeing such a pattern suggests that something is fundamentally amiss. The magnets aren’t working. "
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The article contends that the culprit is the cost and availability of housing in the places with the most opportunity. And that happens because the people who live in those places oppose new housing construction. San Francisco would have a much greater population if those who already live there weren't able to block residential real estate development--so the argument goes.
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The article contends that the culprit is the cost and availability of housing in the places with the most opportunity. And that happens because the people who live in those places oppose new housing construction. San Francisco would have a much greater population if those who already live there weren't able to block residential real estate development--so the argument goes.
Tuesday, December 05, 2017
Special report: Can we build our way out of the housing crisis? - The San Diego Union-Tribune
Special report: Can we build our way out of the housing crisis? - The San Diego Union-Tribune: "San Diego County should be awash in new housing projects.
Unemployment is low and wages are rising. Many millennials are marrying, having children and aiming to buy. Their parents want to downsize.
But the market is not responding.
Last year only about 10,000 housing units were approved, and most were for rent, not for-sale homes and condos."
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The article suggests that anti-growth sentiments and lack of land zoned residential are the main problems, along with developers being afraid that if they build condos or HOA housing, the association will sue them for construction defects. I'm just spitballing here, but maybe they could try building them without defects, instead of cutting corners and lobbying for the legislature to take away the right of consumers to sue.
Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.
Unemployment is low and wages are rising. Many millennials are marrying, having children and aiming to buy. Their parents want to downsize.
But the market is not responding.
Last year only about 10,000 housing units were approved, and most were for rent, not for-sale homes and condos."
-----------------
The article suggests that anti-growth sentiments and lack of land zoned residential are the main problems, along with developers being afraid that if they build condos or HOA housing, the association will sue them for construction defects. I'm just spitballing here, but maybe they could try building them without defects, instead of cutting corners and lobbying for the legislature to take away the right of consumers to sue.
Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.
Thursday, November 30, 2017
Vancouver’s “Radical” Housing Plan Makes Waves – Next City
Vancouver’s “Radical” Housing Plan Makes Waves – Next City: "It involves densifying areas that are currently stocked with single-family homes, restricting property ownership by nonpermanent residents and creating zones of rental-only housing."
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Vancouver has a lot of condos as it is, but: "“We’ve had more than enough supply, and yet the housing costs have gone crazy,” the author concluded. (It’s important to make the distinction, however, between housing for sale and housing for rent. Vancouver’s construction boom has been condominium-heavy, and its rental vacancy rate remains among the lowest in the world.)"
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Vancouver has a lot of condos as it is, but: "“We’ve had more than enough supply, and yet the housing costs have gone crazy,” the author concluded. (It’s important to make the distinction, however, between housing for sale and housing for rent. Vancouver’s construction boom has been condominium-heavy, and its rental vacancy rate remains among the lowest in the world.)"
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
Supervisors to vote on rescinding sale of private street in Presidio Heights - Story | KTVU
Supervisors to vote on rescinding sale of private street in Presidio Heights - Story | KTVU
"The wealthy homeowner's plight has drawn little sympathy in the wider community, with several speakers arguing today that the association was at fault and lambasting the board's support of the wealthy. Ronen, in particular, argued against rescinding the sale, noting that the homeowner's association had lost the property once before in the 1980s for the same reason. "This case has viscerally impacted San Franciscans because there's no discretion in the law when it comes to poor people, there's no discretion in the law when it comes to people of color," she said, noting that most city residents did not enjoy private access to their streets and sidewalks."
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This was fun while it lasted.
"The wealthy homeowner's plight has drawn little sympathy in the wider community, with several speakers arguing today that the association was at fault and lambasting the board's support of the wealthy. Ronen, in particular, argued against rescinding the sale, noting that the homeowner's association had lost the property once before in the 1980s for the same reason. "This case has viscerally impacted San Franciscans because there's no discretion in the law when it comes to poor people, there's no discretion in the law when it comes to people of color," she said, noting that most city residents did not enjoy private access to their streets and sidewalks."
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This was fun while it lasted.
Bay City bar countersues condo owners for harassment | MLive.com
Bay City bar countersues condo owners for harassment | MLive.com
The condo owners sued because of the noise from the bar, so the bar owner sued the owners. This is going well.
The condo owners sued because of the noise from the bar, so the bar owner sued the owners. This is going well.
Monday, November 27, 2017
South Africa: Gated Communities and Privatised Privilege - allAfrica.com
South Africa: Gated Communities and Privatised Privilege - allAfrica.com
"Attempts to privatise privilege by invoking the law of contract or property law speaks of a pre-constitutional mindset associated with a particularly toxic strand of liberalism. In terms of this view, the wealthy and socially privileged can largely opt out of ordinary legal obligations and the non-discrimination provisions of the Constitution. You can do this (according to a widely held, but false, belief) by buying and/or managing private property according to a set of rules "agreed" to by the property owners and by those who "voluntary" frequent these properties. All you have to do (according to this surprisingly persistent myth) is to invoke what has become an empty platitude ("right of admission is reserved") and - magically! - you have become exempt from any constitutional or other legal obligations."
"Attempts to privatise privilege by invoking the law of contract or property law speaks of a pre-constitutional mindset associated with a particularly toxic strand of liberalism. In terms of this view, the wealthy and socially privileged can largely opt out of ordinary legal obligations and the non-discrimination provisions of the Constitution. You can do this (according to a widely held, but false, belief) by buying and/or managing private property according to a set of rules "agreed" to by the property owners and by those who "voluntary" frequent these properties. All you have to do (according to this surprisingly persistent myth) is to invoke what has become an empty platitude ("right of admission is reserved") and - magically! - you have become exempt from any constitutional or other legal obligations."
Brookhaven reverses vote to prohibit gated community - Reporter Newspapers
Brookhaven reverses vote to prohibit gated community - Reporter Newspapers
But they are going to develop a policy on this: "[T] he city will work toward creating a broad policy to consider whether the city should allow future gated communities as it works to create connectivity and promote walkability."
But they are going to develop a policy on this: "[T] he city will work toward creating a broad policy to consider whether the city should allow future gated communities as it works to create connectivity and promote walkability."
Saturday, November 25, 2017
Malibu church to stop helping the homeless because city tells them it "lures the needy"
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/malibu-church-homeless-free-meals-stopped-too-many-needy-people-order-latest-a8075891.html
The United Methodist Church, one of many churches that provides food and help, has been offering free meals twice a week. But it said it was going to stop after being told the meal servicewas luring too many homeless people.
Dawn Randall, a member of the church, said it recently received an email from city officials. “Very succinctly, they claimed we are increasing homelessness,” she told CBS.
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Malibu is a ritzy beach suburb north of Los Angeles. I guess the city wants the homeless to go back to East Third Street in downtown LA.
South African gated communities socked for "draconian" practices
https://www.iol.co.za/sunday-tribune/news/gatedestates-a-victory-against-arrogant-draconian-rules-12065349
DURBAN - Property tycoon Niemesh Singh is prepared to fight the Mount Edgecombe Country Club Estate in the highest court should they appeal against a landmark high court judgment against gated estates.
On Friday, Singh successfully contested the “draconian rules”, including restrictions placed on the movement of domestic workers at the swish estate, in court this week. He said he was prepared for the “journey against arrogance”.
Residents were fined when their domestic workers were found walking on the pristine pathways, or when motorists failed to adhere to the 40km/h speed limit when driving on the estate’s roads.
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Malaysian criminals operating from gated communities
http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/free-from-cops-criminals-now-running-business-from-gated-communities#FCDsJeOyw5lm9J73.97
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JOHOR BARU, Nov 25 ― Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed revealed today that criminals are now operating from the safety of gated and guarded residential areas.
The deputy home minister said there have been cases of telephone scams, online gambling, human trafficking and also drug labs there since the police cannot go after them inside.
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Wednesday, November 22, 2017
CondoGate: Is there a Scandal in your Community Association? - Realty Times
CondoGate: Is there a Scandal in your Community Association? - Realty Times
Attorney Benny Kass weighs in on a matter that people ask me about frequently.
Attorney Benny Kass weighs in on a matter that people ask me about frequently.
Condos out, apartments in | Articles | News | OakPark.com
Condos out, apartments in | Articles | News | OakPark.com
"It was a golden age for condo conversions in the Chicago area in the 1980s and 90s, but the financial crash of 2008, changing demographics and a hot market for rental units has sent the pendulum swinging in the other direction. The real estate trend is now toward condo deconversions or bulk sales – where condo buildings are being converted back into rentals – also is taking place in Oak Park."
"It was a golden age for condo conversions in the Chicago area in the 1980s and 90s, but the financial crash of 2008, changing demographics and a hot market for rental units has sent the pendulum swinging in the other direction. The real estate trend is now toward condo deconversions or bulk sales – where condo buildings are being converted back into rentals – also is taking place in Oak Park."
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And in addition to a stronger market for rentals, the trend toward deconversion is driven by the failure of condo associations: "The challenge we see now on the condo side are non-functioning condo associations," he said, adding that they often "don't have the money to pay for the work that's needed." Hess said CIC is in the early stages of determining whether to establish a fund to lend to these troubled condo associations."
Another interviewee, an attorney, pointed out other problems: "Planek said tenants are steering away from condos in favor of rentals for a number of reasons: high taxes and assessments; increased desire for mobility; and lack of interest in being involved in condo associations."
Another interviewee, an attorney, pointed out other problems: "Planek said tenants are steering away from condos in favor of rentals for a number of reasons: high taxes and assessments; increased desire for mobility; and lack of interest in being involved in condo associations."
Monday, November 20, 2017
Saudi Arabia Just Announced Plans to Build a Mega City That Will Cost $500 Billion - Bloomberg
Saudi Arabia Just Announced Plans to Build a Mega City That Will Cost $500 Billion - Bloomberg:
"Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced plans to build a new city on the Red Sea coast, promising a lifestyle not available in today’s Saudi Arabia as he seeks to remake the kingdom in a time of dwindling resources. The prince said the city project, to be called “NEOM,” will operate independently from the “existing governmental framework” with investors consulted at every step during development. The project will be backed by more than $500 billion from the Saudi government, its sovereign wealth fund and local and international investors, according to a statement released on Tuesday at an international business conference in Riyadh."
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The Saudi government is trying to diversity their economy as they plan for a post-oil world. They are using a $2 trillion (!) sovereign wealth fund to get involved in many investments, including infrastructure projects all over the world.
"Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced plans to build a new city on the Red Sea coast, promising a lifestyle not available in today’s Saudi Arabia as he seeks to remake the kingdom in a time of dwindling resources. The prince said the city project, to be called “NEOM,” will operate independently from the “existing governmental framework” with investors consulted at every step during development. The project will be backed by more than $500 billion from the Saudi government, its sovereign wealth fund and local and international investors, according to a statement released on Tuesday at an international business conference in Riyadh."
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The Saudi government is trying to diversity their economy as they plan for a post-oil world. They are using a $2 trillion (!) sovereign wealth fund to get involved in many investments, including infrastructure projects all over the world.
Friday, November 17, 2017
Local HOA finds large sum of unclaimed money, 10 News Find...
Local HOA finds large sum of unclaimed money, 10 News Find...:
"A Blacksburg homeowners association that has more than 100 members recently discovered it had a six-figure paycheck it never knew about."
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It seems that a previous treasurer from ten years ago put stocks and CDs in a safe deposit box, then left, and nobody knew about it.
"A Blacksburg homeowners association that has more than 100 members recently discovered it had a six-figure paycheck it never knew about."
-
It seems that a previous treasurer from ten years ago put stocks and CDs in a safe deposit box, then left, and nobody knew about it.
Fire, death leads to Bay Pointe HOA tussle in Mason with Rentz Management
Fire, death leads to Bay Pointe HOA tussle in Mason with Rentz Management:
I won't try to summarize this saga, but it is an awful story. A more accurate headline is in USA Today: "Phoenix condo owners fight $15,000 plus HOA assessments--and win."
I won't try to summarize this saga, but it is an awful story. A more accurate headline is in USA Today: "Phoenix condo owners fight $15,000 plus HOA assessments--and win."
Tuesday, November 14, 2017
The Remunicipalisation of Water Services in Paris, France - futurepolicy.org
The Remunicipalisation of Water Services in Paris, France - futurepolicy.org:
"On 24 November 2008, against exponentially rising water prices, a severe lack of transparency, and poor accountability, the City Council of Paris decided not to renew its municipal water supply contracts with the private companies Veolia and Suez (two of the French powerhouses in global water services), instead remunicipalising water to be under public control. The production and supply of Paris’ water was unified under the public entity Eau de Paris, which assumed operations of the whole system from 2010 onwards. Despite the major financial, labour and logistical challenges that the city faced, the transition was managed on time with no difference in terms of service to the end user and impressive financial savings for the people of Paris, and surplus profits have been reinvested for the further development of the city’s water infrastructure. This policy has shown that remunicipalisation of water services can be successful on a grand scale."
"On 24 November 2008, against exponentially rising water prices, a severe lack of transparency, and poor accountability, the City Council of Paris decided not to renew its municipal water supply contracts with the private companies Veolia and Suez (two of the French powerhouses in global water services), instead remunicipalising water to be under public control. The production and supply of Paris’ water was unified under the public entity Eau de Paris, which assumed operations of the whole system from 2010 onwards. Despite the major financial, labour and logistical challenges that the city faced, the transition was managed on time with no difference in terms of service to the end user and impressive financial savings for the people of Paris, and surplus profits have been reinvested for the further development of the city’s water infrastructure. This policy has shown that remunicipalisation of water services can be successful on a grand scale."
Monday, November 13, 2017
Phoenix Landmark condo owners fight HOA assessments — and win
Phoenix Landmark condo owners fight HOA assessments — and win: "The HOA assessment for a new HVAC system would have cost each of them at least $15,000 per condo. Many other owners in the 236-condo high-rise said the same thing as Hardaway: They could not afford the assessment, and it could cost them their home."
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They got a judge to overturn the assessment, but this isn't over. Apparently the work still needs to be done. There is an ongoing issue of what work, how much, and how to pay for it. But it is yet another example of huge special assessments that seem to be more and more common.
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They got a judge to overturn the assessment, but this isn't over. Apparently the work still needs to be done. There is an ongoing issue of what work, how much, and how to pay for it. But it is yet another example of huge special assessments that seem to be more and more common.
Sunday, November 12, 2017
Op-Ed: New York Needs a New Deal - News | Planetizen
Op-Ed: New York Needs a New Deal - News | Planetizen
From water mains to public buildings, much of the infrastructure in use in the city today is 60-80 years old, Chaban explains. New York would need to spend $47 billion just to reach a state of good repair across the board, he writes, noting that "any major expansion or sweeping modernization would cost billions more."
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The whole country is in a similar situation, especially every big city. We have two infrastructure crises--one is public and the other is private. The crisis of public infrastructure is well-documented, and people are trying to find ways to solve it. But there is a little-known crisis of private infrastructure. Some of that private infrastructure is in HOAs and condo associations, where there isn't enough money to repair or replace it. There are also some big privatized pieces of infrastructure, such as toll highways, bridges, and many other systems. They are in the hands of private corporations that, in most cases, leased it for 75-99 years. And when it starts to go bad, these corporations don't want to pay for it. They want to sell off their lease or go bankrupt. All this private infrastructure has to be maintained and eventually rebuilt. It seems to me that this crisis of private infrastructure is not being thought about or planned for.
Saturday, November 11, 2017
Friday, November 10, 2017
The Deep Question Behind Rand Paul's 'Trivial' Dispute - Bloomberg
The Deep Question Behind Rand Paul's 'Trivial' Dispute - Bloomberg: "If Skaggs is accurately representing the senator’s views (not to mention the cause of the dispute), Paul has a highly selective idea of property rights. His get-out-of-my-face version of libertarianism doesn’t seem to respect the crucially important freedom to make, and responsibility to respect, contracts.
Your property rights don’t give you the freedom to violate your homeowners association contract specifying how to maintain your lawn any more than my free-expression rights give me the freedom to violate the Bloomberg contract saying I can’t write for The Wall Street Journal. If you can’t live with the restrictions, you don’t sign the contract. And if your neighbor isn’t sticking to the rules, you don’t go after him with your fists. You take it up with the homeowners association -- that most local version of politics."
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The problem with this argument is that in most cases HOA and condo association buyers don't "sign" any contract to join the association. They just buy the home, and membership is automatic, so these associations are mandatory-membership organizations, not voluntary associations. It is increasingly common for buyers to find that all the good options are in private communities.The law uses a legal fiction to classify them as voluntary, but in fact that isn't completely true for many people.
Rand Paul may be one of those people who believes that he has the full bundle of property rights and can do whatever he chooses. But is it because he didn't know what he was getting into? I doubt it. Rand Paul may be one of the few people who really did know and bargain for what he got, but who wants to act as he chooses. He isn't the average person. He is very rich and well educated and powerful. He can live wherever he chooses, and he built his own house in a gated community, where everybody is restricted. So if he wants his neighbors to be restricted, but doesn't want to be restricted himself, then there is a problem.
Then there is the supreme irony that he's a libertarian. Libertarians have been raving about how great HOAs are for the last fifty years. They love the idea that there is a "private" substitute for local governments. They think private, contract-based local government is utopia.
So, even though I don't normally find that "freedom of choice" argument very persuasive, for somebody like Rand Paul, maybe it carries more weight.
Your property rights don’t give you the freedom to violate your homeowners association contract specifying how to maintain your lawn any more than my free-expression rights give me the freedom to violate the Bloomberg contract saying I can’t write for The Wall Street Journal. If you can’t live with the restrictions, you don’t sign the contract. And if your neighbor isn’t sticking to the rules, you don’t go after him with your fists. You take it up with the homeowners association -- that most local version of politics."
-------------------
The problem with this argument is that in most cases HOA and condo association buyers don't "sign" any contract to join the association. They just buy the home, and membership is automatic, so these associations are mandatory-membership organizations, not voluntary associations. It is increasingly common for buyers to find that all the good options are in private communities.The law uses a legal fiction to classify them as voluntary, but in fact that isn't completely true for many people.
Rand Paul may be one of those people who believes that he has the full bundle of property rights and can do whatever he chooses. But is it because he didn't know what he was getting into? I doubt it. Rand Paul may be one of the few people who really did know and bargain for what he got, but who wants to act as he chooses. He isn't the average person. He is very rich and well educated and powerful. He can live wherever he chooses, and he built his own house in a gated community, where everybody is restricted. So if he wants his neighbors to be restricted, but doesn't want to be restricted himself, then there is a problem.
Then there is the supreme irony that he's a libertarian. Libertarians have been raving about how great HOAs are for the last fifty years. They love the idea that there is a "private" substitute for local governments. They think private, contract-based local government is utopia.
So, even though I don't normally find that "freedom of choice" argument very persuasive, for somebody like Rand Paul, maybe it carries more weight.
Thursday, November 09, 2017
Atlas Shrubbed - POLITICO Magazine
Atlas Shrubbed - POLITICO Magazine:
I love this. Application of the libertarian's favorite, the Coase Theorem, to Rand Paul's leaf-blowing dispute with his neighbor.
I love this. Application of the libertarian's favorite, the Coase Theorem, to Rand Paul's leaf-blowing dispute with his neighbor.
Wednesday, November 08, 2017
America’s ‘Retail Apocalypse’ Is Really Just Beginning
America’s ‘Retail Apocalypse’ Is Really Just Beginning: "The root cause is that many of these long-standing chains are overloaded with debt—often from leveraged buyouts led by private equity firms. There are billions in borrowings on the balance sheets of troubled retailers, and sustaining that load is only going to become harder—even for healthy chains. The debt coming due, along with America’s over-stored suburbs and the continued gains of online shopping, has all the makings of a disaster. The spillover will likely flow far and wide across the U.S. economy. There will be displaced low-income workers, shrinking local tax bases and investor losses on stocks, bonds and real estate. If today is considered a retail apocalypse, then what’s coming next could truly be scary."
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They are talking about big retail chains with stores in cities all over the country that may close. For example, the map that goes with this story says that 26.8% of retail loans in Pittsburgh are delinquent. A number of big chains have filed for bankruptcy, including Toys R Us, Payless Shoes, Sports Authority, Radio Shack, and Circuit City.
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They are talking about big retail chains with stores in cities all over the country that may close. For example, the map that goes with this story says that 26.8% of retail loans in Pittsburgh are delinquent. A number of big chains have filed for bankruptcy, including Toys R Us, Payless Shoes, Sports Authority, Radio Shack, and Circuit City.
Rand Paul not a perfect neighbor, developer says
Rand Paul not a perfect neighbor, developer says: "While there's no official word on what caused the fight, Skaggs suggested it might have stemmed from Paul allegedly blowing lawn trimmings into his neighbor's yard.
There have been disagreements in the past, Skaggs said, over lawn clippings or who should cut down a tree branch when it stretched over a property line. The two men live on different streets but their lots join and their homes are 269 feet apart, according to Google Maps.
Skaggs described Boucher as a "near-perfect" neighbor, but he said the libertarian politician is a different story.
Paul "was probably the hardest person to encourage to follow the (homeowner's association regulations) of anyone out here because he has a strong belief in property rights," said Skaggs, who is the former chairman of the Warren County Republican Party.
Skaggs noted the 13 pages of regulations are extensive. But even from the start of Paul's residence in Rivergreen, Skaggs said Paul has been difficult to work with.
"The major problem was getting the house plans approved," Skaggs said. "He wanted to actually own the property rights and build any kind of house he wanted. He didn't end up doing that, but it was a struggle." "
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There's irony for you. Libertarian writers have been waxing poetic about the virtues of homeowner associations and gated communities for decades. But here we have the most famous libertarian politician in the USA who apparently doesn't fully appreciate the nirvana of private rules that he has freely chosen, as they keep insisting. Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.
There have been disagreements in the past, Skaggs said, over lawn clippings or who should cut down a tree branch when it stretched over a property line. The two men live on different streets but their lots join and their homes are 269 feet apart, according to Google Maps.
Skaggs described Boucher as a "near-perfect" neighbor, but he said the libertarian politician is a different story.
Paul "was probably the hardest person to encourage to follow the (homeowner's association regulations) of anyone out here because he has a strong belief in property rights," said Skaggs, who is the former chairman of the Warren County Republican Party.
Skaggs noted the 13 pages of regulations are extensive. But even from the start of Paul's residence in Rivergreen, Skaggs said Paul has been difficult to work with.
"The major problem was getting the house plans approved," Skaggs said. "He wanted to actually own the property rights and build any kind of house he wanted. He didn't end up doing that, but it was a struggle." "
----------------
There's irony for you. Libertarian writers have been waxing poetic about the virtues of homeowner associations and gated communities for decades. But here we have the most famous libertarian politician in the USA who apparently doesn't fully appreciate the nirvana of private rules that he has freely chosen, as they keep insisting. Thanks to Fred Pilot for the link.
Condo disputes can now be resolved online | Toronto Star
Condo disputes can now be resolved online | Toronto Star: "Ontario's 1.6 million condo residents have a new avenue for settling disputes in their buildings and neighbourhoods. Last week, the province launched its first online tribunal to help resolve the complaints that arise in 10,000 condo corporations.
The Condominium Authority Tribunal (CAT) provides direct access to mediators and adjudicators in a stepped process that begins with a $25 fee, although to start, it is only looking at issues related to accessing condo records."
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There are so many condo disputes that treating them like other civil matters through the judicial system is prohibitively expensive. That's why there are so many proposals to send them off into some form of alternative dispute resolution. Putting the process online is a fairly dramatic step, it seems.
The Condominium Authority Tribunal (CAT) provides direct access to mediators and adjudicators in a stepped process that begins with a $25 fee, although to start, it is only looking at issues related to accessing condo records."
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There are so many condo disputes that treating them like other civil matters through the judicial system is prohibitively expensive. That's why there are so many proposals to send them off into some form of alternative dispute resolution. Putting the process online is a fairly dramatic step, it seems.
Tuesday, November 07, 2017
Crime Trackers: HOA treasurer accused of stealing more than $200 - KVOA | KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona
Crime Trackers: HOA treasurer accused of stealing more than $200 - KVOA | KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona: "GREEN VALLEY - A trusted member of the community is accused of ripping off a home owner's association in Green Valley.
79-year-old Wendell Byram allegedly stole more than $200,000, leaving homeowners in the lurch.
In April, Byram showed up at the Pima County Sheriff's department in Green Valley, admitted to the theft and turned himself in, investigators said.
A homeowner, who wants to remain anonymous, said they are very familiar with the case. They live in the neighborhood where Byram was the treasurer for the home owner's association for the last seven years.
“He apparently had the full trust of the board members," the neighbor said. "They never asked to look at bank statements, and he kept two sets of books.”"
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Yet another one of these. When are state governments going to accept that HOA and condo association finances must be monitored in some fashion?
79-year-old Wendell Byram allegedly stole more than $200,000, leaving homeowners in the lurch.
In April, Byram showed up at the Pima County Sheriff's department in Green Valley, admitted to the theft and turned himself in, investigators said.
A homeowner, who wants to remain anonymous, said they are very familiar with the case. They live in the neighborhood where Byram was the treasurer for the home owner's association for the last seven years.
“He apparently had the full trust of the board members," the neighbor said. "They never asked to look at bank statements, and he kept two sets of books.”"
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Yet another one of these. When are state governments going to accept that HOA and condo association finances must be monitored in some fashion?
Nampa homeowners share their story after ugly HOA fight | KTVB.COM
Nampa homeowners share their story after ugly HOA fight | KTVB.COM: "NAMPA - It has been the center of attention in a Nampa neighborhood for over a year, but the days of a black wrought-iron fence will soon be coming to an end.
"The lawsuit has been settled, we are selling our home, and moving to a new subdivision, the fence is coming down," said Nampa homeowner Bekah Graves.
Bekah and her husband, Eric, have spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars battling the Shalimar Terrace homeowners association for the right to keep their powder-coated black ornamental steel fence around their property.
"It got to the point that financially, and emotionally, we just couldn't do it anymore," said Bekah Graves."
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And that's the way it usually goes. Homeowners decide at some point that it isn't worth fighting the association.
"The lawsuit has been settled, we are selling our home, and moving to a new subdivision, the fence is coming down," said Nampa homeowner Bekah Graves.
Bekah and her husband, Eric, have spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars battling the Shalimar Terrace homeowners association for the right to keep their powder-coated black ornamental steel fence around their property.
"It got to the point that financially, and emotionally, we just couldn't do it anymore," said Bekah Graves."
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And that's the way it usually goes. Homeowners decide at some point that it isn't worth fighting the association.
Subdivision easily approves HOA in step toward reclaiming lakes | News-Gazette.com
Subdivision easily approves HOA in step toward reclaiming lakes | News-Gazette.com: "CHAMPAIGN — Members of a northwest Champaign subdivision voted to form a homeowners association Monday night, putting them closer to regaining ownership of two retention basins that the county auctioned off without their knowledge.
The next step in the saga, which began in May, comes with a choice — attempt to legally reverse the auction sale or buy the basins back.
A packed room of Timberline Valley South residents voted 94-11 in favor of creating an HOA. The vote comes six months after Nasty Joe's LLC bought the two large retention basins for about $1,800 in a county auction, surprising many residents who didn't know the basins' drainage taxes hadn't been paid for years."
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These tax auctions are just bizarre.
The next step in the saga, which began in May, comes with a choice — attempt to legally reverse the auction sale or buy the basins back.
A packed room of Timberline Valley South residents voted 94-11 in favor of creating an HOA. The vote comes six months after Nasty Joe's LLC bought the two large retention basins for about $1,800 in a county auction, surprising many residents who didn't know the basins' drainage taxes hadn't been paid for years."
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These tax auctions are just bizarre.
Mt. Juliet mom outraged HOA rejected request to put Little Free Library in yard | WKRN News 2
Mt. Juliet mom outraged HOA rejected request to put Little Free Library in yard | WKRN News 2: "MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN) – A Mt. Juliet mother is outraged after her homeowner’s association rejected her request to put a Little Free Library in her front yard.
Six-year-old Maggie told News 2 she loves to read. She asked her mother if they could put a Little Free Library in their yard similar to one located a few miles from their Mt. Juliet home.
“I want to build a community library because I want kids to learn to love to read like me,” explained Maggie."
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The board says they "felt that it was not in keeping with the neighborhood," whatever that means.
Six-year-old Maggie told News 2 she loves to read. She asked her mother if they could put a Little Free Library in their yard similar to one located a few miles from their Mt. Juliet home.
“I want to build a community library because I want kids to learn to love to read like me,” explained Maggie."
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The board says they "felt that it was not in keeping with the neighborhood," whatever that means.
Condo owners sue to close downtown Bay City bar | MLive.com
Condo owners sue to close downtown Bay City bar | MLive.com:
To the barricades! The condo owners have a bar in the building and they don't like the noise. The condo association filed a lawsuit.
To the barricades! The condo owners have a bar in the building and they don't like the noise. The condo association filed a lawsuit.
Monday, November 06, 2017
Was the Mysterious Attack on Rand Paul Politically Motivated? | Vanity Fair
Was the Mysterious Attack on Rand Paul Politically Motivated? | Vanity Fair:
Libertarian republican senator Rand Paul was attacked by his neighbor in the gated community where they live next door to each other. I hope he recovers quickly, because it turns out that he suffered multiple broken ribs and a bruised lung. Paul's office says he was "blindsided" while mowing his lawn. There is also the suggestion that they have argued before. I don't think we have the whole story.
Libertarian republican senator Rand Paul was attacked by his neighbor in the gated community where they live next door to each other. I hope he recovers quickly, because it turns out that he suffered multiple broken ribs and a bruised lung. Paul's office says he was "blindsided" while mowing his lawn. There is also the suggestion that they have argued before. I don't think we have the whole story.
Friday, November 03, 2017
Former Albuquerque HOA President charged with embezzlement, forgery | KRQE News 13
Former Albuquerque HOA President charged with embezzlement, forgery | KRQE News 13: "Desiree Pepin, former president of the Los Colinas Homeowners Association, was arraigned on felony embezzlement and forgery charges more than three years after her neighbors took their case to Bernalillo County Sheriff’s detectives.
“It’s an excellent paper trail we have, we figured it’d be wrapped up pretty quickly, so it was extra frustrating when they kept stringing us along and not doing anything,” explained Konrad Dzula, current President of the Los Colinas HOA.
According to a civil complaint, as HOA President from 2002 to 2014, Pepin collected $30 membership dues from residents each month. Eventually, neighbors said they started receiving invoices with added fees.
“There was a pattern of this for like about six months where we would go from owing $30 to $180 and we didn’t know why,” said Matt Angel, who also lives in the subdivision...Online court records show this isn’t the first time Pepin’s been in trouble. Court records show she was convicted of forgery, fraud, and filing false insurance claims in 2003.
Court records also show Pepin was on probation, ordered to pay restitution to insurance companies during the same time she served as HOA president."
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People who didn't pay the bogus charges were threatened with liens and legal action, of course. And of course the residents who were being bilked had to move heaven and earth for three years to get a criminal case brought.
“It’s an excellent paper trail we have, we figured it’d be wrapped up pretty quickly, so it was extra frustrating when they kept stringing us along and not doing anything,” explained Konrad Dzula, current President of the Los Colinas HOA.
According to a civil complaint, as HOA President from 2002 to 2014, Pepin collected $30 membership dues from residents each month. Eventually, neighbors said they started receiving invoices with added fees.
“There was a pattern of this for like about six months where we would go from owing $30 to $180 and we didn’t know why,” said Matt Angel, who also lives in the subdivision...Online court records show this isn’t the first time Pepin’s been in trouble. Court records show she was convicted of forgery, fraud, and filing false insurance claims in 2003.
Court records also show Pepin was on probation, ordered to pay restitution to insurance companies during the same time she served as HOA president."
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People who didn't pay the bogus charges were threatened with liens and legal action, of course. And of course the residents who were being bilked had to move heaven and earth for three years to get a criminal case brought.
Friday, October 27, 2017
Dogged fight to keep Chicago Riverwalk forever open, clear, free: Mihalopoulos
Dogged fight to keep Chicago Riverwalk forever open, clear, free: Mihalopoulos
Boeing has taken over a public walkway, and the City of Chicago won't do anything about it. Privatization by corporate land grab--small but real.
Boeing has taken over a public walkway, and the City of Chicago won't do anything about it. Privatization by corporate land grab--small but real.
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Infinite Suburbia | Newgeography.com
Infinite Suburbia | Newgeography.com: "Global urbanization is heading toward infinite suburbia. Around the world, the vast majority of people are moving to cities not to inhabit their centers but to suburbanize their peripheries. Thus, when the United Nations projects the number of future "urban" residents, or when researchers quantify the amount of land that will soon be "urbanized," these figures largely reflect the unprecedented suburban expansion of global cities. By 2030, an estimated nearly half a million square miles (1.2 million square kilometers) of land worldwide will become urbanized, especially in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In the United States alone, an additional 85,000 square miles (220,000 square kilometers) of rural land will be urbanized between 2003 and 2030. Given that these figures represent the conversion of currently rural land at the urban fringe, these lands are slated to become future suburbias."
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Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. Two comments:
First, what happened to all the predictions about the "death of suburbia"? Those predictions were largely predicated on transportation costs that were going to go sky-high when the oil ran out and gas became so expensive that the middle class couldn't afford to commute to work. But then telecommunications made it easier for more people to work from home, and fracking came along, and oil prices plummeted. Then there was the glut of suburban housing after the overbuilding that led to the crash of 2008. Now it appears that suburban living is quite popular, not only in the US, but in developing nations.
Second, will CIDs continue to predominate in the new housing that is appearing all over the world? I think so, based on a number of international conferences that I have attended. I think the trend toward privatization of local government will continue, and this means addressing some of the enduring challenges, such as paying for the maintenance and replacement of costly private infrastructure systems.
--------------------
Thanks to Fred Pilot for this link. Two comments:
First, what happened to all the predictions about the "death of suburbia"? Those predictions were largely predicated on transportation costs that were going to go sky-high when the oil ran out and gas became so expensive that the middle class couldn't afford to commute to work. But then telecommunications made it easier for more people to work from home, and fracking came along, and oil prices plummeted. Then there was the glut of suburban housing after the overbuilding that led to the crash of 2008. Now it appears that suburban living is quite popular, not only in the US, but in developing nations.
Second, will CIDs continue to predominate in the new housing that is appearing all over the world? I think so, based on a number of international conferences that I have attended. I think the trend toward privatization of local government will continue, and this means addressing some of the enduring challenges, such as paying for the maintenance and replacement of costly private infrastructure systems.
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Here’s where you’ll live when self-driving cars rule the roads - MarketWatch
Here’s where you’ll live when self-driving cars rule the roads - MarketWatch:
Have you ever wondered what life will be like when self-driving cars are the norm?
Have you ever wondered what life will be like when self-driving cars are the norm?
Calverton Hills homeowners sue county over outdated sewer system | Riverhead News Review
Calverton Hills homeowners sue county over outdated sewer system | Riverhead News Review: "Mr. Hotchkin said the unit owners do not own the sewer treatment plant and therefore can’t get financing or grants to pay for a new one. Instead, homeowners claim, the county has owned the plant since the community’s original owner, Nugent Building Corp., dissolved in 1980.
According to court documents, around 2007, the county health department advised homeowners at Calverton Hills that the treatment plant was not operating according to code. Documents submitted by the county say that “the common elements of the property” were deeded to the Calverton Hills Homeowners Association in 1990.
Additionally, the county said homeowners voluntarily entered into a consent agreement in 2007 to bring the sewer treatment system into compliance, according to court papers."
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I posted something on this a few days ago. There is a dispute regarding who is responsible for the sewer system, and there is a lot at stake. The county says it is time to fix the system, but the HOA says the owners don't have $7 million and can't come up with it.
According to court documents, around 2007, the county health department advised homeowners at Calverton Hills that the treatment plant was not operating according to code. Documents submitted by the county say that “the common elements of the property” were deeded to the Calverton Hills Homeowners Association in 1990.
Additionally, the county said homeowners voluntarily entered into a consent agreement in 2007 to bring the sewer treatment system into compliance, according to court papers."
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I posted something on this a few days ago. There is a dispute regarding who is responsible for the sewer system, and there is a lot at stake. The county says it is time to fix the system, but the HOA says the owners don't have $7 million and can't come up with it.
Tuesday, October 24, 2017
Bloomberg Aspen Initiative on Cities and Autonomous Vehicles
Bloomberg Aspen Initiative on Cities and Autonomous Vehicles: "As the pace of autonomous vehicle (AV) innovation picks up, cities have become the proving ground of choice. Tech giants, automakers, and startups alike are focused on cities because that is where future customers live and work.
This Atlas is the world’s first inventory of how cities around the globe are preparing for the transition to a world with AVs. As cities seek to learn from one another, they can look to this map for up-to-date information on what’s underway worldwide."
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Fascinating to see what is happening with self-driving cars around the world. This transportation revolution is happening, and it would be nice if the US could lead it, but the US national government is leaving it to cities, so probably China and the EU will be far in front.
And the same is true in other critical policy areas that relate to the future, and even the present. The US is losing its leadership role in world affairs and the global economy so fast that it is breathtaking.
This Atlas is the world’s first inventory of how cities around the globe are preparing for the transition to a world with AVs. As cities seek to learn from one another, they can look to this map for up-to-date information on what’s underway worldwide."
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Fascinating to see what is happening with self-driving cars around the world. This transportation revolution is happening, and it would be nice if the US could lead it, but the US national government is leaving it to cities, so probably China and the EU will be far in front.
And the same is true in other critical policy areas that relate to the future, and even the present. The US is losing its leadership role in world affairs and the global economy so fast that it is breathtaking.
Monday, October 23, 2017
Child deaths spike after DCFS privatizes 'intact family services' - Chicago Tribune
Child deaths spike after DCFS privatizes 'intact family services' - Chicago Tribune: "The mission of intact family services, which roughly 2,700 children are receiving statewide, is to offer counseling, resources and oversight to keep families together, instead of putting children through another trauma by removing them from the home and placing them with strangers.
The spike in deaths began in 2012 after DCFS completely privatized the program, putting the care of families in the hands of nonprofit groups but doing little to evaluate the quality of their work, give them guidance and resources, or hold them accountable when children were hurt or put at risk, the Tribune found."
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Unregulated privatization programs are among the worst examples of market fundamentalism run wild. This example is especially tragic.
The spike in deaths began in 2012 after DCFS completely privatized the program, putting the care of families in the hands of nonprofit groups but doing little to evaluate the quality of their work, give them guidance and resources, or hold them accountable when children were hurt or put at risk, the Tribune found."
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Unregulated privatization programs are among the worst examples of market fundamentalism run wild. This example is especially tragic.
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
Calverton homeowners sue Suffolk over sewage system demands | Newsday
Calverton homeowners sue Suffolk over sewage system demands | Newsday:
"Homeowners at a Calverton town house complex have filed a federal lawsuit against Suffolk County in a dispute over a sewage treatment system that serves the development’s homes. Leaders of the Calverton Hills Homeowners Association say the county is requiring residents to install a new wastewater plant that would cost about $7 million — far more than many residents can afford. Landlords said about half of the complex’s approximately 1,000 residents are on some form of public assistance, and some units are in foreclosure. “It’s going to be a financial hardship for a lot of families that have an income less than the median income,” said Michelle Janlewicz, who owns and rents out three units. “Most people already owe more than the property is worth.”"
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It appears that this sewer system was installed by the developer in 1973. In 2005, the country told them that the system doesn't meet discharge standards and it was the HOA's responsibility to pay for replacing it. The HOA got a $2 million estimate on replacing the sewer system, but didn't do it, and now there are additional requirements that led to today's estimate of about $7 million. The HOA has raised $500,000-$600,000, but all they did is raise the assessments by $30 per month, which is small change compared to what associations typically do when they have to specially assess for major expenditures. Now they are suing to force the county--i.e., the taxpayers of the whole country--to pay for a new sewer system for this subdivision, which I suspect is unlikely to work. The county is saying that if the HOA doesn't pay for this and get it installed, they will close the subdivision.
I have been saying forever that many associations are going to go under because they don't have enough money in reserves to pay for inevitable repair and replacement of major private infrastructure for which they are responsible. People buy into associations with no understanding of the financial risk. Eventually things wear out, and the people who happen to own the units when that happens get stuck with the bill. This is why associations are supposed to get reserve studies done. It's tragic to see these situations, but unfortunately we will be seeing a lot more as the years go by. And this is why the whole subject of private infrastructure needs to be viewed as a public policy issue.
"Homeowners at a Calverton town house complex have filed a federal lawsuit against Suffolk County in a dispute over a sewage treatment system that serves the development’s homes. Leaders of the Calverton Hills Homeowners Association say the county is requiring residents to install a new wastewater plant that would cost about $7 million — far more than many residents can afford. Landlords said about half of the complex’s approximately 1,000 residents are on some form of public assistance, and some units are in foreclosure. “It’s going to be a financial hardship for a lot of families that have an income less than the median income,” said Michelle Janlewicz, who owns and rents out three units. “Most people already owe more than the property is worth.”"
---------------------
It appears that this sewer system was installed by the developer in 1973. In 2005, the country told them that the system doesn't meet discharge standards and it was the HOA's responsibility to pay for replacing it. The HOA got a $2 million estimate on replacing the sewer system, but didn't do it, and now there are additional requirements that led to today's estimate of about $7 million. The HOA has raised $500,000-$600,000, but all they did is raise the assessments by $30 per month, which is small change compared to what associations typically do when they have to specially assess for major expenditures. Now they are suing to force the county--i.e., the taxpayers of the whole country--to pay for a new sewer system for this subdivision, which I suspect is unlikely to work. The county is saying that if the HOA doesn't pay for this and get it installed, they will close the subdivision.
I have been saying forever that many associations are going to go under because they don't have enough money in reserves to pay for inevitable repair and replacement of major private infrastructure for which they are responsible. People buy into associations with no understanding of the financial risk. Eventually things wear out, and the people who happen to own the units when that happens get stuck with the bill. This is why associations are supposed to get reserve studies done. It's tragic to see these situations, but unfortunately we will be seeing a lot more as the years go by. And this is why the whole subject of private infrastructure needs to be viewed as a public policy issue.
Monday, October 16, 2017
A libertarian utopia was actually tried here — and it failed miserably
A libertarian utopia was actually tried here — and it failed miserably:
Ayn Rand was wrong? Somebody tell Paul Ryan because he hasn't heard the news yet.
Ayn Rand was wrong? Somebody tell Paul Ryan because he hasn't heard the news yet.
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