empty subdivisions

[beachmouse]

It seems like government should only play a role if a property is decaying enough to be classified as 'blighted', and even then under fairly limited circumstances to prevent what is seen as blight from spreading.

And it's pretty hard to define what's essentially vacant land as blighted, especially since one common way of dealing with bad urban blight is to bulldoze blighted areas until they resemble vacant subdivisions like NatureWalk's current state. (see essentially entire streets in the city of Detroit)

From what I've seen of the 30-A corridor area, the only subdivision that come close to real blight is the little street in Inlet Beach with 4-6 half-built homes where constructions seems to have just stopped on them for a couple of years.

 

[John R]

The Paris place comes close to 'blight' as does the Aquaterra, although the grass has almost taken it back over. I'd like to see the county take naturewalk via eminent domain and make it a park. but that will never happen.

 

[beachmouse]

Get rid of the block wall with the rebar sticking out of the top, and 'Paris' is just another vacant field. Aquaterra's also in vacant field territory.

I don't see anything in SoWal that counts are the kind of scary, community-killing blight you get in so many places big and small across America. When we lived in Tennessee, we had to go through Cairo, Illinois in order to get to St. Louis, MO. Wish we would have stopped there to take pictures because it's a visually stunning example of urban blight and decay, and, unlike Detroit or St. Louis, you didn't feel like you were in danger of physical harm if you stopped the car long enough to point a camera at a building crumbling in interesting ways.

Found someone who did take pictures of it:

http://marathonpundit.blogspot.com/2008/08/my-mississippi-manifest-destiny-cairo.html

Now that is 'proper' blight.

 

[scooterbug44]

Big difference between true blight and your "development" not having its taps and cute roads completed.

IMO the only time the County should get involved is if there is a built structure in such disrepair that it is a safety issue.

We have much better things to be spending our limited resources on than fixing up private property so it looks pretty. :roll:

 

[Smiling JOe]

lets say the County pays for the roads, with concrete ribbon curbing, and the water taps. If no one buys a lot, who the heck will pay for continued maintenance? The County? for what reason? tax revenues would continue to be non-existent, would they not? I just don't see it as a viable way to make things better.

I grew up in a town which is heavy into Historical Preservation of old homes. Recently, the Historical Society was trying to take possession of a house, which the owner had pretended to be renovating for the last thirty years. The house is an eyesore, but does that give gov't entities the right to take private property? Lord, I hope not.

 

[scooterbug44]

Why should the county pay for paving roads and tap fees in these developments when they don't do it anywhere else?

I love my unpaved road, but know others would like theirs paved and have been waiting for years for it to occur.

Fiscal mismanagement combined with a lack of infrastructure and residents certainly shouldn't be a reason for them to get paved roads before contributing and populated areas.

I am SO tired of people and businesses who are reckless and greedy getting things that hardworking and responsible people/businesses don't.

 

[AAbsolute]

Why should the county pay for paving roads and tap fees in these developments when they don't do it anywhere else?

I love my unpaved road, but know others would like theirs paved and have been waiting for years for it to occur.

Fiscal mismanagement combined with a lack of infrastructure and residents certainly shouldn't be a reason for them to get paved roads before contributing and populated areas.

I am SO tired of people and businesses who are reckless and greedy getting things that hardworking and responsible people/businesses don't.

Doesn't the County take on a fiduciary duty to the citizens when it approves a D.O. and takes a security instrument from the Developer to ensure completion? What's the purpose of the performance bond if not for this?

 

[passin thru]

.... a security instrument from the Developer to ensure completion? What's the purpose of the performance bond if not for this?

AA, I second your question .... any County attorney or commissioners out there willing to reply to this? The concept is mostly, I believe, to assure the early lot buyers that the development will be finished -- but it should also assure us neighbors/citizens that it'll be finished.

And John R, I agree with you .... how about NatureWalk being converted into affordable housing sites for public/private development partnerships, for a park, for a day care site, and some commercial, including a cinema site?

 

[citeright]

The county has accepted the duty to make sure that developers install what they promised when given a development permit. The money placed as a security needs to be used to finish as much of the development as possible.

The problem is that this amount of money may not be enough to finish the project when liens are placed on the property by contractors or the utility providers.

Because so much of our economy is based on construction, we are going to have to make the hard choices and force developers to finish their projects or accept the responsibility of the basic services of roads, water, and sewer. The banks will not sink more funds into a project. or will they?

Lets be clear that someone will have to lead, ask who, then make them.

The community needs to be clear about what is going to be required.

 

[SHELLY]

The county DID get involved...it rubber stamped its approval over and over and over again on development requests--that's why we've arrived at this point. For the sake of all that is holy--the county needs to butt out and let the chips fail where they may. If the counties are cryin' the blues over budget shortfalls for fire, cops and schools, wherethehell are they going to find the money to mop up the messes that the developers' left behind?