LO_15_23 Online & On The Streets - Light Up Lakewood Map!

[Jim O'Bryan]

“Kindness is like snow. It beautifies everything it covers.” – Kahlil Gibran

Pick up a new copy at over 100 locations around town. Or, download it here:
http://media.lakewoodobserver.com/issue ... sue_23.pdf

Thank you to everyone involved with this project! Check out the latest act of love and respect from your friends and neighbors.

See you all at Light Up Lakewood!

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[Amy Martin]

So, I find it interesting to see the piece by Brad Presutto - "LAKEWOOD MAKES COMMITMENT TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING" - that the City unanimously adopted giving developers with deep pockets a tax abatement on the 3 new proposals along Detroit (One Lakewood Place, Spitzer and Barry Buick) IN THE SAME YEAR that a School Levy will be placed on the ballot. This is a slap in the face to the taxpaying citizens of Lakewood. Now, we will have to shoulder a greater burden while the rich developers get a pass for a few years from paying any taxes . . .

There should be outrage in the City over this corporate welfare bullshit.

[Bridget Conant]

In return for tax abatement, the developers must set aside a number of units and offer them at a rate affordable to people earning 80% of the average median income in the area.

Lakewood’s AMI, from several sources, appears to be $48,70, lower than the average AMI in Northern Ohio.

If you were earning 80% of AMI you’d have an income of about $38,900. Assuming they’d calculate 30% of your gross income as available for housing, (which is the common figure used by HUD) your rent should not exceed $972.50.

So assuming the the “market rate” is around $1400 per month, the developers would be forgoing about $500 PER MONTH, per number of units in the program, which is supposed to be 100.

That comes to 50 grand per month, or $600,000 per year.


Perhaps Dan O’Malley or Tristan Rader can tell us more.

What are the expected property taxes on the development?

Are the developers willing to forgo $600,000 in rental income in return for tax abatement? If so, the tax abatement must certainly need to be in the same range as the loss of rental income to make it worthwhile.

What dollar figure did the city calculate it would lose in property tax by offering this rebate?

[Jim O'Bryan]

The cost of being cool?

This is the very problem we have spoken about since day one of this project. Non-organic development.

You have to stick in all sorts of BS to support it. Rarely if ever fair to anyone involved.

Not fair to the people paying the top dollar, not fair to low income that can barely qualify and struggle to keep up.

Not fair to the tax-payers underwriting it, when their tax dollars should be used to maintain their community.

As soon as you start this, you slide down a slippery slope of paying more and more. When Lakewood rose to its cool level with no TIFs, not abatement.

And here lies the future of Lakewood, buying residents both low and high income.

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[cmager]

The cost of being cool? This is the very problem we have spoken about since day one of this project. Non-organic development. You have to stick in all sorts of BS to support it. Rarely if ever fair to anyone involved.

Those trying to be cool are the planners and politicians acting like they did something for the greater good.

[Jim O'Bryan]

The cost of being cool? This is the very problem we have spoken about since day one of this project. Non-organic development. You have to stick in all sorts of BS to support it. Rarely if ever fair to anyone involved.

Those trying to be cool are the planners and politicians acting like they did something for the greater good.

I believe the problem becomes when City Council members, with little experience, and an administration with friends with little experience become planners and developers. Which leads to them having friends that are developers, which leads to sweetheart deals, employees morphing back and forth with developers and the selling out of a great community to friends and associates for pennies on the dollar. A community that was more than healthy on its organic course of being a great place to live and raise a family. Because they failed, then need tax abatement, and other giveaways from hard working people to make millions. Yet another transfer of the wealth.

Now the real question, who involved in this or these debacles are also investing in them? You know to help the city out.

More coffee shops then ever before yet Lakewood residents sleep walk through the swamp, left by Belle Avenue Creek.

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