New Haven Independent

Posted by: Ned | October 21, 2005 4:46 PM

I'm no fan of DeStefano, or the one-party state; however, I don't see how "bragging about escalating rents of $3,000 and more" is a bad thing for New Haven. In case no one has noticed, New Haven has a huge number of "affordable" housing units in the numerous public housing projects, in various states of decay and renewal, throughout the city. In addition the corruption of the New Haven Housing Authority is well known, as the frequent scandals involving graft, cronyism, financial mismangement are well documented. Does New Haven really need more of the same; is public corruption good for the public housing tenants, the taxpayers, or the city in general? Furthermore, New Haven is seen as a dumping ground for poor people. The surrounding towns basically ignore their responsibilty to develop affordable housing schemes, and New Haven has done more than its share in accomodating people with few or no financial resources. Also, a percentage of the rental units, in the newly redeveloped Ninth Square, are subsidized, and there is also a supportive housing development on State St., downtown.

As someone who was displaced, from San Francisco, a truly unaffordable place, I moved to New Haven because housing is cheap, for an urban area.

As far as the connection between "skyrocketing rents and the recent crime spree plaguing certain parts of the city". I don't see the logic? Rents in high-crime areas normally go down, along with property values, as no one wants to live in a dangerous environment. Why do I get the feeling though that there is always an implied threat that if I don't financially support other peoples anti-social brats, that I deserved to be assaulted by the little criminals, or their violence is somehow justified? If one can't provide the basics for one's kids - don't expect your neighbors to pay for the offspring of your unprotected sexual escapades.

Posted by: giskardgray | October 22, 2005 3:28 AM

I regret that I have not had discussions with Leslie, though I have certainly been positively influenced by overhearing her, over the years.

I strongly encourage New Haveners of good will to write her name, Leslie Blatteau, in on the tiny, inconveniennt piece of paper in the slot for write-in candidacies for Mayor on our antiquated, but servicable, voting machines.

Take heart, at least the computers can't be used to steal that vote, this way!

The Greens had abandoned we, the People, long before I was forced to run as a write-in candidate, myself, but apparently the Guilties have taken up the banner of those of us who would have been abandoned to death at the Coliseum, if New Haven had been New Orleans.

Do not vote for ANY incumbent,unless you like the idea of dying in a wheelchair in front of that white elephant or on the first floor of any nearby nursing home!

The time has come to use our votes, not waste them. If there is an alternative, vote for it. At the least, it will take a while for the new electee to learn the ropes of corruption.

When they do, hopefully, we can depose them!

What other option is open to us?

Guns won't work.

Posted by: Leslie Harper Blatteau | October 24, 2005 6:50 PM

I would like to welcome Ned from San Francisco to New Haven. It interests me that the relative affordibilty of New Haven attracted him here. If I were mayor, I would make it a priority to keep New Haven housing affordable! Our small city is not another New York or San Francisco, so there should be no comparison in rent prices.

There are extremely long waiting lists for the affordable housing units Ned describes in his post. These waiting lists do not meet the immediate housing needs of many working people in our city. These working people do not want to live in public housing necessarily, they want to be able to afford to pay their rent! As city developers continue to cater to the luxury apartment trend, less and less support is given to more realistic housing opportunities. And rents in our city's neighborhoods continue to increase. If a landlord sees a downtown rent going for $2000 and more, he somehow has a justifcation to charge more in other parts of the city.

As the cost of living increases, some struggling people will turn to less than desirable means to make ends meet. This is the connection between crime and skyrocketing rents. Downtowners and Yalies beware-- crime has not been relegated to the "low-income" neighborhoods. In fact, the recent rash of crimes has been reported in the Yale and downtown area. So much for the high cost of living keeping crime at bay.

I hope Ned's negativity towards his New Haven neighbors subsides, as he gets to know some of the wonderful people with whom he shares this city.

Register to Vote! Tuesday, October 25, 2005 is the deadline! Registrar of Voters open late!

Posted by: Charlie | October 31, 2005 5:49 PM

I appreciate Leslie's concern for the poor, but the fact is that New Haven needs a tax base, not more affordable housing, to support increasing social service costs.

Leslie's connection of crime to anything involving real estate and tax base is an irresponsible scare tactic. A handful of kids having fun mugging a few downtown residents says nothing about the quality of life in this city, which is one of the wealthiest and safest cities in the United States. The crime rate in New Haven has been through a massive decline over the past few years, and the best way to keep it down is to support policing initiatives, improve the quality of youth education, and grow the tax base!

Currently, New Haven has more luxury housing downtown than many cities of its size (probably because it has a much more vibrant downtown than any city its size), but it could and should develop its tax base by adding many more units. The city should not waste a dime on attempting to subsidize housing for affordable units in the downtown area. This money would be much better spent on local schools or in fixing up units in neighborhoods, many of which already have a very healthy mix of income levels. Poverty and underperformance has to be addressed at a regional and national level, not by a cash-strapped city government.

Let the downtown tax base develop naturally. There should be thousands of new condominiums and apartments built downtown, and if each new unit charges $5000 per month for rent, that's a good sign that people want to live in the city -- rather than in a large house somewhere in the suburbs.

Also, it is probably natural that real estate values are going to increase in the center (like in Europe, Japan or anywhere else where there isn't the problem of "white flight" and subsidized disinvestment in central cities), and be lower on the periphery. As we've corrected the problems of the 1960s and 1970s, cities are going to return to the way they once were - centers of their regions.