Like many Minneapolitans for Dean I spent last weekend on the campaign trail in Iowa. The Mayor and Council were represented also, and hopefully there were observant of the housing in the towns we visited. While I saw no yuppie $200,000 and up condos and townhouses in Iowa, unlike Minneapolis I saw no homeless folks either, What I did see was a lot of affordable housing options we're not allowed in Minneapolis- converted commercial buildings, factory built homes, rehabbed classic older homes with wood stoves, etc..
The other pleasant surprise was the price of the housing. Here in Minneapolis the city's historic restriction of the market for affordable housing has pushed the price of a single family home from around $5,000 in the 1950s to over $200,000 today. In Iowa a new single family factory built home goes for well under $100,000 with lot and hookups and sets the top of the market. It naturally follows that there are plenty of older homes available for less right down to fixer uppers that can be bought for the back taxes.
This means that an Iowa citizen living on a minimum wage job or social security can afford decent housing. Meanwhile, in Minneapolis one needs around $40,000 in after tax income to buy a fixer upper in a gang infested neighborhood. Minnesota's Job Service reports that 2 out of 3 of the available jobs pay less than $20,000 a year... Mayor and Council, it is your duty to provide affordable housing to these citizens, not further jack up paper property valuations to fund your bureaucracy.
hanging on in Hawthorne,
Dyna Sluyter
On Thursday, January 22, 2004, at 10:03 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
The Star Tribune has a story today about the bitter cold and the corresponding tragedy of full homeless shelters. The story is at: http://www.startribune.com/stories/1524/4333223.html. From the story:
As temperatures plummeted, many of the Twin Cities' homeless wore
expressions as thin as their frayed sweatshirts and jackets. Shelters
have opened early this week in an effort to get people out of the bitter
cold -- only to fill just as quickly, forcing others to walk as far as 2
miles to the next shelter, where they can only hope they won't be turned
away again, said Monica Nilsson, shelter director at Simpson Housing in
Minneapolis.
Even with an additional 130 beds provided for winter, Hennepin County shelters can accommodate only 803 individuals and 233 families.
In Ramsey County, which has shelters that can accommodate 253 individuals and 98 families, the demand for beds is such that children are sleeping on mattresses on shelter floors, Nilsson said.
The 120 beds in "overflow" shelters, such as Minneapolis' Harbor Light Center, are in continual use, she said.
Margaret Hastings-Mpls-
______________________________
REMINDERS:
1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list.
2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait.
For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html
For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract
________________________________
Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy
Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
REMINDERS:
1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait.
For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________
Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
