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I'm sure these are well meaning folks, but I don't understand what problem they are trying to solve. A lack of a home certainly *isn't* the problem, it's the symptom. And I hope they have water and toilets nearby along with someone who cleans and maintains the facility, else it will be a mess.
I lived with homeless people in Santa Cruz for a few months. Police harassment is pretty constant because... guess what, people paying rent and mortgages don't want dirty addicts and mentally unstable people living in their neighborhood. Or anywhere near for that matter.
Would be great to see some unvarnished stats on the success of such programs. Then again, I can't find stats on the success of Head Start, various LBJ "Great Society" problems, War Against Drugs, etc. Wonder why that is?
My $.02 is that all charity is great if startup is funded, for example build the homes. That occurs with media and happy kids from Evergreen State College or whatever building the homes. Next, and equally large, chunk is for Operations (admin, finance, maintenance). Parallel chunk of funds for Remediation: mandatory services for bums, vagrants, addicts and the far more benign temporarily displaced mothers, workers, and etc. I'm reasonably certain the latter group can be helped, and is transitory. Lay down terse rules, half-way house style, they'll obey and move on to new destinies. There are already low-income homes like those in nicer parts of Puget Sound area, and it's surprising how grateful and willing some are to have a subsidized home. That is truly charity that works, and they are willing to open their books to demonstrate both success and failure.
Company I worked for many years had a "Day of Volunteerism" over at one such complex, our chosen charity, which was hard labor painting and spreading bark. That's the kind of charity that totally works, society at it's best giving back to those who need a hand *up*.
In contrast:
Addicts, bums, vagrants, mentally ill, and criminals need to be monitored, provided the same opportunities to succeed, then transitioned straight the hell out of there into mental institutions and labor camps to keep them clear of society, if they choose to continue their evil ways either voluntarily or otherwise. That's the part where these programs tend to fall flat, is failing to execute on the tough part: there *will be no more squatting in parks, dealing drugs, stealing and murdering, avoiding work, other criminal BS around taxpaying human beings.* The cops in Santa Cruz should all be given medals for venturing in and busting up that crap periodically; I'd go in with bulldozers, paddy wagons, 100 cops, and flamethrowers, thus perhaps it's best I'm neither police nor in Santa Cruz.
Tiny homes are not the solution for high cost areas. Those areas are expensive because so many people are crowding in and there isn't enough housing.
So, you can put 12 tiny houses on an acre and house 12-14 people. Or you can put a 20 story tall apartment building on that acre with 16 apartments per floor (more than the tiny houses because there is no space between the apartments ) and house 320 families on the same footprint of land.
In some of the really crowded cities, they are building micro studios, so the tiny house people should be happy with that.
That's what the tiny home crowd doesn't seem to get.
I understand the desire not to share walls, but in a city that isn't a viable option. The Real estate is simply too valuable. Really, anywhere other than a semi-rural area it isn't a viable option.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PriscillaVanilla
Small homes were the norm in the early 20th century until around 1980 or so.
Most of these homes only seem tiny because there are so many McMansions now.
I grew up in a 2 bed/1 bath home. It would be almost considered a tiny home by today's standards. I actually think it's perfect for a married couple or single person, or family of three. (Not so much for a family of 4 or more).
No, these homes are tiny by those standards, too. These houses are under 400 sf...Oftentimes under 200 sf...
I do understand where you're coming from. My wife and I would still be in our 725 sf 2 BR if it hadn't been torn down.
In densely populated areas with the highest housing costs, it is much more efficient to stack people into small studio sized or 1BR condos building up than wasting land on low density, small SFHs. If people can afford more, great - let those people buy what they want. If people cannot afford more, then you're left with whatever options you can afford. Barring that, move. The government and NIMBYs both need to get out of the way and let the market respond to housing demands.
If someone is in an average to low end job in a San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, etc, you're probably better off moving to Middle America. I'm sorry, but the elite coastal metros are basically the realm of the top 20% of wage earners or so.
I make $60,000 in a college town of 65,000 northeast TN. I used to work for a company based out of metro Boston. According to a cost of living comparison tool, I'd need to make $120,000 in Boston to have a similar standard of living. My bet is that it's really more, as housing is almost four times the price of here.
The argument that there are no jobs is true to an extent, especially if you compare metro Boston to podunk Tennessee. However, there are still plenty of places like Charlotte, Columbus, Kansas City, Indianapolis, etc., with plenty of jobs and an affordable housing market.
By tiny house, you mean a single wide. Funny how before "tiny houses" hit the market, they were just called trailers and you lived in a trailer park. I wonder how many of those people would live in a trailer park?
Now the tiny house is becoming popular with the homeless. They have 96 sf, heat and electricity, but no plumbing, a shared kitchen, communal showers and outhouses.
I think it's more a rebellion/protest, and not so much about a practical way of living. Own your place, but not pay for fire protection, police, schools, clean water, sanitation, etc. Stick it to 'da man attitude.
"The argument that there are no jobs is true to an extent, especially if you compare metro Boston to podunk Tennessee. However, there are still plenty of places like Charlotte, Columbus, Kansas City, Indianapolis, etc., with plenty of jobs and an affordable housing market."
There's not as many jobs in the Charlotte NC region as you think everyone from other surrounding towns and cities already travel here in town for those jobs. Also since people tend to think that it's so fabulous here everyone's made the big mad dash to travel south. The cost of living has actually sky rocketed with too many apartments and townhouses (an over glorified apartment) being built just cause they see everyone else moving here (they are very expensive to live in considering the lax job market here).
It's more of a you have a family member and get a job that way in this place (also very slow to hire otherwise unlike in the North [I know this first hand]). There are if anything more low end (low job skills low wage) jobs going unfulfilled mainly because people have to make a living to actually well live (those are all the great jobs your likely hearing all about). I know Charlotte has been listed in such articles as Forbes magazine but it's not really all that it seems. Especially since the quality of life is actually going downhill and not up.
It's just something all need to think about before just up and moving without a job then they come to the boards to complain about how horrible it is here how hard it is and on and on about a town that's been over populated with people and within a right to fire state. It's very different in these neck of the woods. No unions and taxes on the rise. I can't even get excited about my property tax on my car going down like it was at first then it suddenly took a sharp spike up (and hasn't stopped) since we now have over crowded roads (some call them growth pains by not if the jobs can't support you). All I can advise to all is it's slow here and visit before moving so you won't have such remorse and culture shock.
I'm sure these are well meaning folks, but I don't understand what problem they are trying to solve. A lack of a home certainly *isn't* the problem, it's the symptom. And I hope they have water and toilets nearby along with someone who cleans and maintains the facility, else it will be a mess.
I lived with homeless people in Santa Cruz for a few months. Police harassment is pretty constant because... guess what, people paying rent and mortgages don't want dirty addicts and mentally unstable people living in their neighborhood. Or anywhere near for that matter.
When you're trying to shelter under a bridge in a rain storm, one of those little houses might look pretty good to you. The lack of a home for most people is simply a matter of money: low rages, high rents, expensive houses. How are you going to cure that problem? And because you can't, is that any reason to not try to shelter people who need it?
Santa Cruz cops have always had a reputation for being hard on the homeless. Back in the 80s when I was living in my truck, I filled in for one of our other restaurants in Santa Cruz. I had asked about just sleeping overnight in my truck (I mean, why not) instead of traipsing over 17 and back, and I was told even if I worked at the business, the cops would roust me.
Maybe I should have let them do that. It would have been something to see their faces the next day when I served them coffee.
And for everyone here who says that tiny houses are just trailers, you have no idea what you're talking about. Trailers are not built for living in full time. Eventually, the roof leaks. They're not insulated in the same way tiny houses are.
A tiny house can have a 50 year roof. They have insulation like a regular house. They won't break down in a couple of years like trailers do from being lived in full time.
I've lived in trailers for most of the past 16 years. Ask me how I know these things.
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