In discussions about the proposed local Spruce Hill historic district, I've mentioned that the mere fact that Spruce Hill is now a popular place to live doesn't "preserve" it - its popularity may actually place it in jeopardy. I've mentioned the housing situation in Ocean City, NJ as an example.
Ten years ago, very few people were buying property in Ocean City; if you wanted to sell a house there, it could take a year or more. And prices had fallen - when we bought our partners out at the house we currently own, it was worth less than it had been in 1988 when we originally bought it - even though we'd spent $50,000 upgrading it! But then the market started to get hot. Ocean City was known as a nice little town - mostly older houses from Victorian to 19-teens Craftsman (which is what I have) through 1950's suburban style ranchers, usually grouped together as streets were built up when they were first opened. While the ranchers weren't beautiful, the Victorian and Craftsman cottages were handsome and gave the place its unique character. These older houses also provided affordable rentals for vacationers and affordable homes for the city's year round population, which is about 1/10th of its summer population. Some modern housing, usually not terribly well-designed, had been filled in and provided additional amenities that tourists like, such as year-round usability, air conditioning and extra off-street parking. In the last few years, though, developers have come in and bought up a lot of the old places and torn them down, replacing them with modern mega-rentals, as you'll see if you go to the article in today's Inquirer: http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/3665301.htm Now, an older duplex like mine is worth somewhere between $400,000 and $500,000 - as a tear-down! And a developer will then build a modern plastic-sided cookie-cutter building and sell its upper floor for $450,000 or more and its lower floor for $425,000 or more - sometimes considerably more. Homeowners are tempted to sell and take the big money. Buyer-landlords rent their new condos out for $2500- $3000 a week, unlike the lower rentals at the older homes ($1000 - $1500 or so). City Council keeps favoring the developer/landlords, since the new buildings pay higher taxes to the city. An article last week in a local OC paper said that this spring, the average price of properties a homeowner might buy was over $700,000. The permanent population is declining since the locals can't afford that. Is it inconceivable that this could happen in Spruce Hill, where landlords already own the majority of the property and the rental market is tight, and remodeled, amenity-filled, large buildings at the edge of Penn and Drexel's campuses such as the West Bank are already getting huge rents? Could our properties be torn down and replaced with expensive housing for our wealthy temporary residents, the students? Can we count on being able to remain here, if we have no historic district and no rezoning in the northern part of Spruce Hill? Will University City someday be filled with newer rental buildings? It's happening in Ocean City. And buildings are regularly torn down in center city Philadelphia. Think about it. Yes, it can happen here! We need both the historic district and the more restrictive zoning in northern Spruce Hill to keep our neighborhood intact and affordable. Melani Lamond ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
