I honestly would like to see the CRA concentrate on slum and blight within the district they control (which is vast) within the City of Lake Worth. They spend millions building affordable houses to attract more people living in the blighted areas or creating new ones, ignoring the slum and blight and the crime it all breeds.
This graffiti is on South H Street and 1st Avenue South.
Can the city make them do these things first before handing over city owned buildings to them for art?
If they can't take care of the basics, then they don't deserve our historical City Hall Annex, the Shuffleboard Court building or any other building within our city. We have so much art in our downtown that I don't see where any of them can make any money.
But the "visionaries" ran with the concept
and we all had absolutely nothing to say about it.
It's a good thing that we get to vote on some of their ideas. Oops, that's right...we did vote this year and you remember how that went.
It's a good thing that we get to vote on some of their ideas. Oops, that's right...we did vote this year and you remember how that went.
IS THIS WHAT ANDY AMOROSSA IS TALKING ABOUT WHEN HE STATED LOW INCOME HOUSING TO ARTIST--THERE YOU GO ANDY WONDERFULL WORK
ReplyDeleteThe CRA needs to be re-districted OUT of our downtown. Several merchants have asked for their help and been turned down. Why are they still there?
ReplyDeleteProbably because they are doing precisely what they are supposed to do. By working with other organizations and with federal grant dollars they knocked down scores of dilapidated and deteriorated buildings and constructed new homes that are now owner occupied. That in essence is eliminating blight and slum.
ReplyDeleteThe CRA has been recognized nationwide as a model on how to operate and won many awards from County, State and National entities.
The Urban Arts Lofts are one example of how the CRA envisions expansion of improvements West of the tracks to include the historically blighted neighborhoods into areas families and investors will want to move into.
The only place I see any critical comments on the CRA are here on this blog. They have not built one structure over 35 feet high. What kind of improvement are you looking for?
When you see graffiti spray painted on walls, why is that all of a sudden the CRA's fault? Call the Sheriff's office. 688-3400. They have a special unit your tax dollars pay for that travels around the county painting over and removing graffiti.
Or call the CRA's office and the staff will be happy to make the report for you. 493-2550.
Merry Christmas.
Without government money you wouldn't have a job. Why don't you get out in the CRA district and find the graffiti and get it down? You report it if you can't spray over it. Why should everyone else do your job? It's not too hard to find.
ReplyDeleteWhat I am looking for is less SLUM AND BLIGHT. When you cater to "affordable" you get what??
If you want to hear criticism, get out in the trenches. There are 2 blogs that write on LW. One kisses everyone's butt especially the CRA's and the other gives the facts and truthful opinion. It's easy to give away someone else's money. Get rid of the crap. You are in charge of the downtown and that graffiti on J was there since
ReplyDeleteApril. Are you blind? Just don't give a damn? Too busy taking federal money to have the time to do what you're supposed to do?
Another thing on the Lofts, how come an employee of the city got to buy one? Is that a starving artist?
You are an unelected board in charge of a lot with a budget consisting of TIFF money and you're not answerable to anyone, not even the commission.
Merry Christmas yourself.
Again in spite of a rambling non-reply that could only have come from an overpaid beaurocrat- WHY IS THE FRIKKIN CRA STLL IN OUR DOWN TOWN ?!?
ReplyDeleteIf you can't see the positive impact the CRA has had on Lake Worth over the last 5 years, that's really your own personal problem. Trying to blame the CRA for graffiti is like trying to blame this sitting commission for the blight that's been ignored until they took office. Makes zero sense but when you have a small group of uninformed residents making comments that's what you end up with, no sense.
ReplyDeleteIt's really a shame that you can't read and interpret, anonymous at 12:53.
ReplyDeleteWe have MORE slum, blight and crime now than ever before. We definitely have MORE affordable housing for poor people.
Graffiti comes with slum, blight and crime and there is more of it in our downtown, a CRA district. Do something about it. While you're at it, do something with the homeless and panhandlers roaming around down there too.
What a bunch of misinformation and outright lies. The Arts Lofts ARE affordable housing and there is a waiting list to buy them. You must qualify with good credit. You cannot be an investor... you must live there which replaces a bunch of empty lots and low rent rentals. That's called eliminating blight. Most all of the habitat for humanity homes replaced run down blight and slum. Those houses are now no longer rentals to illegals or worse. They are occupied by homeowners many of whom are active in their neighborhood association; a very good thing for the neighborhood and a necessary tool to combat creeping slum. They pay property taxes. They pay into the electric utility which as you know, helps fund the city.
ReplyDeleteAnd the reason the downtown is in the CRA district is that once upon a time, the stores were almost all empty. The CRA is partially to credit for some of the activity and crowded streets that now exist.
More slum and more blight and more crime is your opinion. I know I see it differently. Yes, there is still plenty to do but that is because of the policies that encouraged slum landlords and poor people to move here for the cheap rents and government services within walking distance, since most don't drive.
Some of those services, thanks to this administration, have been closed so that other communities might take up some of the slack.
Now we need to concentrate on bringing up the property values, bring up the rents (a dirty word to many of your followers) and improve our infrastructure. Oh, what's that? This administration is trying to propose just that? Gee, wonder what side you'll take.
Certainly the CRA has had some successes, but I think they do ignore blight and other issues and bull ahead on their pet projects. Take for example the bike lanes and sharrows. This was a project that was first of all a waste of money, there is no reason, under best practices, to have bike lanes on 25 mile an hour roads. Then you need to look at the quality of the roads, they basically spent a lot of money painting roads, that didn't need to be painted, and frankly have increased danger for bikers (by including direction arrows on one way streets, drivers will rely on same and the bikers go in the other directions, also the location of the striping has increased dooring hazards) on roads that are in disrepair. One of my favorite sharrows had a big pothole in the middle of it. Makes no sense to stripe and surely makes no sense to stripe on roads is such poor conditions that the striping and sharowing is already a mess less than a year or so later.
ReplyDelete4:57 anonymous--the Lofts are all sold.
ReplyDelete3,000 square foot townhouses to those artists whose credit score is 550 (that is horrible) or better and not making more than 120 percent of the area median income for Palm Beach County of $73,080 for a family of two in a neighborhood already filled with families of the working poor. I don't consider $73,080 poor.
Then why is it so bad that they are moving into new housing that was previously occupied by the poor or vacant land?
ReplyDeleteYou are the one calling the affordable housing the CRA is putting up housing for the poor. You can't have it both ways. Are they attracting the poor or aren't they?
I don't consider $73K poor either. But that's not stopping them for applying for and obtaining affordable housing.
Affordable doesn't mean slum. Affordable doesn't mean only poor people will buy it. The UAL's are a prime case in point.
They are already sold and there are a list of names wanting to buy if anyone wants to sell. That's what I called a waiting list.
I hope to see the CRA continue with the same concept right on down Lucerne Ave. and West on Lake Ave. It would improve the area immensely.
Have you ever considered just for one moment, that building 12 townhouses for close to $6 million and selling them for $100,000 each approx might be IMMORAL? prob ably not. That's what's wrong with everything today. Obama's "You didn't build that" concept fits right in.
ReplyDeleteThe truth of the matter is--80% of Lake Worth is affordable. The CRA needed a way to spend the NSP2 grant. They like spending money and those who qualified wanted brand new. Well why not? That's the way it is these days...much has changed when I was younger and we had to work hard to save money to buy our own place. Nothing was given. No hand-outs and no one would have thought to do that. That was when we had a balanced budget ? and weren't 17 trillion in debt.
ReplyDelete