Grab your popcorn, folks! This is the hearing in its entirety. We apologize for the sound quality (again), but this is what we’re using for a microphone:
There’s an omnidirectional mic at the base of that Solo cup, which does a decent job picking up voices. Unfortunately, because we’re always in the gallery, it also picks up coughs, paper shuffling, and chair moving.
We will comment in much greater detail about last night’s zoning board hearing soon, but one thing stands out.
Borough Manager George Locke went on record explaining what could constitute a zoning violation akin to what the Downses are contesting. If you help a neighbor mow their lawn or clear their yard, you could be cited. Mowing someone else’s lawn — for whatever reason — labels your activity as “commercial” and you are in violation of Jenkintown zoning code.
This is an excerpt of the full 3-plus-hour, monumentally wasteful and pointless, zoning hearing where Peggy and Dave Downs find themselves defending against a code violation that never occurred.
For the past several months, pedestrians walking along the 300 block of Rodman Avenue might have noticed a half-block of sidewalk dug out and cordoned off by yellow tape. The photo above taken last Thursday shows it patched with asphalt, something not allowed by borough code.
The property abutting this sidewalk belongs to Jay Conners, Borough Council Member, Chairman of the Public Works Committee, local Democratic party chairman, and a Friend of Sean Kilkenny.
I wrote Jay asking him for an explanation, and he was kind enough to respond:
My water line broke and an emergency repair was done which involved breaking up my sidewalk.
The contractor didn’t finish the job of patching the sidewalk.
Someone complained to the boro that it was causing a safety hazard at which time the boro came out and patched the sidewalk which they do in all cases. At that time I told them that Joe Barricelli had been contracted to replace the sidewalk in the first or second week of June.
I hope this satisfies your curiosity.
I hope you have a nice holiday weekend.
One thing that Jay said is not true. Two years ago, I filed a complaint about this driveway apron. It is still not repaired.
It belongs to Council Vice President and social media bully Rick Bunker.
Two years ago about this time, I already had my first of two appearances at district court after receiving a citation from the borough for violating the sidewalk code. The judge pointed out that if we didn’t do the work, the borough could fine us $185 per day. We did do the work, but at the cost of about $3,000, or the equivalent of one brand-new, much needed furnace to replace the one installed during the Ford administration.
Initially, we resigned ourselves to having the Borough do the work in exchange for a lien on our house as it stated in its initial letter announcing the sidewalk inspections. At the court hearing, George Locke told Judge McHugh that Council had decided that they would no longer do that, although Council never took such a vote.
We were also told by Rick Bunker that municipalities do not perform sidewalk repair work for residents anywhere in Pennsylvania.
Anywhere but Jenkintown and only for sitting council members, apparently.
“In contrast to this broadly public enforcement system for zoning, the enforcement regime for municipally imposed covenants is often tightly limited. Municipalities routinely write covenants that forbid citizen enforcement, and the courts routinely enforce those limits. In one New York case, for example, the owner of an affordable housing complex attempted to convert its property to market-rate apartments.85 The residents sued, alleging that the conversion violated a covenant between the owner and New York City requiring the building to remain affordable for forty years.86 Under New York law, the tenants would have had standing to enforce the covenant if it were intended for their benefit.87 Although it might seem that a covenant requiring the property to remain affordable would be intended for the benefit of the very tenants receiving affordable units, the court held that this covenant reflected no such intent. A clause of the covenant “explicitly negate[d] any intent to permit its enforcement by third parties such as plaintiffs.”88 Honoring that clause, the court held that the tenants were not beneficiaries of the covenant and therefore lacked standing to sue.89 By the covenant’s clear terms, only the City could enforce the covenant’s restrictions.”
The difference between an Affordable Housing unit and low-quality housing is the difference between buying a new Toyota Camry at a 75% discount (courtesy of the government) after winning a lottery (since no car maker likes to sell below cost) and buying a used Nissan Versa yourself because it’s all you can afford, gets the job done, and doesn’t require winning a lottery, since car dealers can still turn a profit on a used car at a lower price. Sure, you won’t impress your friends and you might miss the bell
Source: It Takes All Types (of Housing) — Strong Towns
What makes anything affordable, not just housing? Mostly, it’s supply in relation to demand. It then stands to reason that if you want to bring down the price of something, you just increase its supply.
Why do we even need tax credits and all the politics that come with it to find good housing for seniors — or anyone else for that matter? Just because you don’t want to live at Uncle Buddy’s doesn’t mean that someone else won’t and be grateful for it.
Something to consider with all the “affordable housing” under construction in Montgomerty County of late and its messy relationship with county Democrats, Israel Roizman, and some other unsavory characters.
(Thanks to Ann Brennan for the tip).
