Councilmember Goodman was reported in the Strib as saying that "real estate agents oppose the program in part because of a backlog in inspections."
Why not add inspectors? While we are at it we can eliminate some things that Barbara Nelson and others may legitimately feel are unnecessary. Supposedly the program is revenue neutral. At least the Mayor's office sees it that way according to their handouts at Budget meetings. If it's not revenue neutral, make it. It is not as though the city doesn't spend big sums of money inspecting restaurants, groceries, outdoor hot dog stands that are not offset by license revenues. The License Department just underwent a major change to the fees it charges food establishments. Even then the money they will receive will not cover costs and they hope to garner enough revenue through fines to pay their way. Moreto the point, why aren't Truth in Housing inspections seen as basic city services just as food inspections are? Perhaps we should do away with restaurant and grocery inspection and rely instead on media food critics or suggest to people that we cannot save them from the foolish mistake of eating at say, The Loring Cafe, where cosmetics are everything. Should we say to those poisoned by salmonella: "Tough luck, you should have known better." Or how about we eliminate the Inspectors who cruise alleys citing homeowners for overgrown bushes that as far as I can tell present no hazard except to refuse workers hanging off the back of their trucks. I'm all for that! There were a couple developers around town years ago who went by the names Benson and Mecay. They restored historic buildings like Lumber Exchange, Bellevue Hotel, and the Calhoun Beach Club. They turned grain elevators into condos. The problem with Benson and Mecay was that just about every job they worked on either leaked water or in the case of the Bellevue had so little insulation that the condo owners shivered through the winters and couldn't afford to pay astronomical heat bills. They were pre-Truth in Housing. They left a great number of well heeled and seemingly sophisticated buyers queueing up in court to sue them while they were headed to bankruptcy court. I could go on. But the library is about to close, it's Friday evening and believe it or not I do have a life! Cheers! Have a nice weekend. Tim Connolly Ward 7 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Sports - Coverage of the 2002 Olympic Games http://sports.yahoo.com _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
