Contribute To Change
By Mitch Berg
Eva Ng is running for Mayor of Saint Paul.
The city desperately needs her.
She’s got a fundraiser tomorrow night:
We would treasure the honor of your presence at a fundraiser hosted by Martin and Esther Kellogg for Eva Ng, Saint Paul Mayoral Candidate
Thursday, July 9th – 7:00 pm
339 Mount Curve Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55105
Featured Speaker: Governor Tim Pawlenty
Please RSVP to 651-699-1937
Saint Paul is a wonderful place, but it shows the effects of letting the inmates run the asylum; taxes are booming, but the Mayor is still threatening to cut services and hike taxes more! Crime – heretofore very low by major city standards, and a fraction of that of neighboring Minneapolis – is rising. The city pays for essential services like police and fire with LGA – i.e. money from the rest of the state – while financing “fluff” with the city’s bedrock revenue, property taxes. The mortgage crisis is gutting the lower-income neighborhoods – Frogtown, the North End, Dayton’s Bluff – but the city’s policy guarantees that none of the vacant houses can ever be sold to human occupants.
Saint Paul needs a clean sweep. Starting over at the top would go a long way.
Please – get out and support Eva.
July 8th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Mitch said: “Saint Paul needs a clean sweep.”
And Eva Ng needs a vowel in her last name. Give generously.
July 8th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
I keep wishing Eva Young would move to Saint Paul and go for the DFL endorsement.
That way Eva Ng could do posters saying “The only thing between Eva Ng and Eva Young is You!”.
Alas.
July 8th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
I would bet there is a 200 lb difference between Ng and Young.
July 8th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
But then Young woudl be Mayor, do you really want that!
Back on task,
You say this:
“The mortgage crisis is gutting the lower-income neighborhoods – Frogtown, the North End, Dayton’s Bluff – but the city’s policy guarantees that none of the vacant houses can ever be sold to human occupants. “”
and the Mayor says this:
http://www.stpaul.gov/index.aspx?nid=2837
—
Available through the second round of the $1.93 billion Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP2) administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the $46 million would advance the City’s efforts to acquire, rehabilitate, and reoccupy houses in areas hit hardest by the foreclosure crisis. The NSP2 money would supplement the funds Saint Paul has already secured this year, including $4.5 million from the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency and $4.3 million in the first round of NSP dollars through the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA).
With the $46 million, the City would be able to acquire an estimated 400 homes, of which roughly 300 would be rehabilitated and the rest removed. In addition, the City would use a portion of the funds to provide financial incentives to approximately 300 homebuyers to buy vacant homes in targeted areas.
—
July 8th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
the City’s efforts to acquire, rehabilitate, and reoccupy houses
So, the city is going to occupy houses? There’s a public employee perk!
July 8th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
Government to the rescue, eh Flush.
Government to run the auto industry, run the housing market… sounds like Liberal Fascism.
Socialism works fine until you run out of other peoples’ money.
July 8th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Flash,
You’ve pretty much proven my point for me.
The City’s policy – any registered vacant house loses its Certificate of Occupancy until it is brought up to current building code by city-licensed labor – will cost at least $100,000 for the imponderably vast majority of homes.
But the City, acting via NSP, can bypass those restrictions (or meet them using other peoples’ money), and then have a whooooole bunch of property to dole out as it pleases. Leaving aside that this is the sort of program that begs to be corrupted; even on the very surface, it provides a HUGE disincentive for private investment, while driving public investment.
Which is exactly what we property rights activists have been warning all of you about for years.
I rarely say this, but it sucks to be right.
July 8th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Heh. I received a news bulletin couple of days ago from teh Mayor. Seems he was mighty proud of the fact that he had found $400k for police overtime this summer….so thanks to the wise, steady leadership of the Mayor, and even though mean Gov. T-Paw has turned off the cash fountain, we can keep teh children safe, see?
Where’d that rascal find this stash, you ask? Wait for it………..
From savings the PD had accrued by limiting overtime.
You’re party of Scrubs, hard on the job! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAaaaaaa!