While other projects in the neighborhood stall and storefronts go vacant, this mighty building at 97 Crooke keeps charging ahead. The 900 lb Gorilla of the social services world - CAMBA - is behind the development. 53 units of subsidized housing will be available to those making 60% or less of area median income. Not quite sure how that is determined - like, what's "area" mean, and I don't know about you, but I don't make the same year to year. Seems loopholey, but I like the idea anyway. The Caledonian connection is this - CAMBA bought the vacant lot from the bankruptcy sale of the Caledonian Hospital. While the greedy Chetrit Group sits on the hospital building itself, ignoring the neighborhood and its people, CAMBA got down to business and pretty soon actual people will have a place to live.
I have some first-hand experience with CAMBA's program to house the formerly homeless, and I'll post more about that another time. As you can imagine, "affordable housing" has its share of misfires too, so I'm not saying they always get it right. Here's more on 97 Crooke, straight from the Gorilla's e-mouth: CAMBA'S 97 CROOKE
Love it or hate it, it was the Stimulus Bill that made it happen. At the risk of lecturing to all those who think the economy-saving Recovery Act was a colossal waste of dough -- that money didn't go down a rat hole. It went into actual projects, actual nonprofit groups, actual salaries and actual infrastructure. It has the same effect on the economy as a tax cut, only it's targeted. Why target it, instead of giving it away willy nilly? Because greedy racist nimby-minded blowhard tea-partying ignorant immigrant-smearing rednecks would waste their taxcut money at Wal Mart, and most of that money goes overseas anyway to ensure that the slave-laboring Chinese never break free of their Dickensian industrial nightmare. Tell 'em the Q said so...
Or better yet, if you haven't seen Jimmy "Rent is Too Damn High" McMillan's performance at the debates last night, you're in for a real treat: RENT IS TOO DAMN HIGH.
And so it is Jimmy. Perhaps at 97 Crooke, it'll only be 60% of too high.
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