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I think we've gone pretty far off the OP's intended path for this thread.
OP, I recently moved to the Fleetwood section of Mount Vernon (I'm a renter). I was drawn here because of how much more I could get for my money compared to other places I looked at, my shorter commute to work in Pelham, and the quick train ride to Grand Central. When I look around Mount Vernon I see what should be potential. Many old homes that have potential for beauty, but instead are left neglected and un-cared for. Unfortunately, I fear this is a city that's going to continue a downward spiral.
I had considered looking for a home here in a few years. I do not plan on having kids, so schools are of no concern to me. I figured the same amount of money spent on a home in Mount Vernon would provide me much more than an equivalent amount spent elsewhere in Westchester. But, as you pointed out, the taxes in Mount Vernon are shockingly high! What gives?
Students who make racist, sexist, and/or homophobic comments should be suspended and required to do an appropriate service task. The Mahopac kids could benefit from some time working in an inner city housing project or school building. Schools have the responsibility to ensure that students are prepared to survive in society, and no one who makes racist, sexist, and/or homophobic comments is prepared to do so. By ignoring the problem, the Mahopac school is failing to meet its obligation to the students.
Adding to my post:
Mahopac should arrange to have the offending students spend time working in the Mt Vernon school. The onus us on the school to discipline and punish the students in a way that will help them learn and grow and hopefully become successful citizens.
That's what competition is for. It's the great equalizer because the best man wins. Others can throw whatever racist remarks at the MV students but their team will always be the winner of the match. There's also the natural penalty of the losing side looking more and more like sore losers as they keep posting racial comments in the internet. No need for additional formal punishment on the Mahopac students. Competition is a good thing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rubygreta
I agree with that. Turn a negative into a positive. The coach should tell the kids that unfortunately, there are people that will never like you because of your skin color. But most people don't care about your skin color. You rose above these idiots and kicked their butts.
I attended academically-focused schools for HS and college and whenever our undermanned sports teams expectedly lost to those who had the "flexibility" to recruit better athletes, there would be not a few people on our side spew the typical "at least we're better in academics" and rich vs poor retort. The winning side would hit back with an apt "we won, you lost, suck it up" and that was that - the best way for men to settle their differences.
Last edited by Forest_Hills_Daddy; 03-11-2014 at 08:15 AM..
I had considered looking for a home here in a few years. I do not plan on having kids, so schools are of no concern to me. I figured the same amount of money spent on a home in Mount Vernon would provide me much more than an equivalent amount spent elsewhere in Westchester. But, as you pointed out, the taxes in Mount Vernon are shockingly high! What gives?
There are so many factors. For one, the industrial and warehouse properties located in the south side of the city have been decimated in terms of their property values. The owners get tax reductions and the homeowners have to pay the difference. Another is the preponderance of tax-exempt "church" properties that used to be taxpaying commercial properties.
As tax rates rise and rise, struggling homeowners can't pay them. Properties are foreclosed which brings down the value of the surrounding neighborhoods. These properties get tax reductions and everyone else pays more.
Sub-prime mortgages killed the south side of Mount Vernon. A typical 2-family house that sold for $500,000 in 2006 when anyone could get a loan, is now worth $250,000 or less. More foreclosures and lower property values for the entire neighborhood.
Finally, the OP also stated that the mayor and his minions are completely clueless, and just keep raising taxes. I am not familiar with Mt. Vernon politics.
I have often pondered what could be done for Mt. Vernon, as I grew up in Fleetwood when Mt.V was a great little town. Its proximity to NYC should make it prime real estate, yet who will invest in South Mt Vernon? Bulldoze everything? When I drive through the part of town near the 'circle', in the springtime everyone is working on their house; new roofs, porches, siding. The houses are beautiful, but the population is struggling to keep things up. As its reputation gets worse and worse, more people with money move away, and no one moves there. There is a hard-working segment of the population who is taking advantage of the lower home prices. Brazilians, Portuguese, Jamaicans, Haitians are all part of the demographics now. Also, the image of Mt Vernon is worse than what it actually is. But, how do cities turn things around? And, do we think it's a 'bad city' because most of the residents aren't white? There are exquisitely beautiful neighborhoods that are totally African-American. Any ideas on future city planning? I have actually written to the mayor, telling him to get Louis Cappelli on the case; he's good at big fix-ups from what I read.
Demolish entire blocks and shrink the city a-la Detroit. That seems to be the only option. No use trying to lure businesses and industries that don't exist or won't come no matter what.
They can make a real estate play as a bedroom community of NYC but they'll have to tread carefully, and be willing to make sacrifices. NYC has a lack of family-size apartments but that could all change depending on how developers can bring new stock online.
Demolish entire blocks and shrink the city a-la Detroit. That seems to be the only option. No use trying to lure businesses and industries that don't exist or won't come no matter what.
They can make a real estate play as a bedroom community of NYC but they'll have to tread carefully, and be willing to make sacrifices. NYC has a lack of family-size apartments but that could all change depending on how developers can bring new stock online.
Businesses are avoiding New York in general, and NY is feeling the hurt. My friends elsewhere in the country say they frequently see TV ads that try to lure businesses to open up and lay roots in NY.
Mount Vernon was once known for being a great bedroom community. Unfortunately a lot has changed in regards to the Vern's reputation since those days. It's a shame; it really could be a wonderful city again. The question is: how do we fix Mount Vernon?
I think the businesses that are leaving are mostly in upstate, which is the subject of those TV ads.
NYC is still slow growth but not contracting and there are plans to expand in tech (esp with the new Cornell campus), education and entertainment.
None of the growth in NYC, however, bodes well for MV as more yuppies and families are showing greater willingness to live in NYC. With that said, cities can be shrunk as Detroit is doing now. You will end up with a smaller but also less expensive MV.
I think the businesses that are leaving are mostly in upstate, which is the subject of those TV ads.
NYC is still slow growth but not contracting and there are plans to expand in tech (esp with the new Cornell campus), education and entertainment.
None of the growth in NYC, however, bodes well for MV as more yuppies and families are showing greater willingness to live in NYC. With that said, cities can be shrunk as Detroit is doing now. You will end up with a smaller but also less expensive MV.
That depends if you consider gentrification "saving" a city i.e. people are now talking about Bed Stuy being "Up and Coming." Can't think of anything in Mt. Vernon worse than Bed Stuy back in the day.
Bed Stuy does not have as many foreclosures per square foot as MV does today, and the issues with poorer people being displaced could be avoided if only NYC and developers worked to increase housing supply so gentrification is not to blame for BS' change in character. Unfortunately for MV, it faces a stark future that the surrounding towns and villages don't (at least not yet). Going the path of the wealthier Westchester neighborhoods is not an option.
That's what competition is for. It's the great equalizer because the best man wins. Others can throw whatever racist remarks at the MV students but their team will always be the winner of the match. There's also the natural penalty of the losing side looking more and more like sore losers as they keep posting racial comments in the internet. No need for additional formal punishment on the Mahopac students. Competition is a good thing.
Sure, competition is swell, but I don't see how that is relevant to this situation. This is not about kids playing a ball game, this is about students making and tweeting racist comments. That is something that most emphatically calls for further action. One of the many lessons these teenagers need to be taught is that actions have consequences--they're getting older now and people are no longer going to say "oh, gee, it was just a ball game, no harm no foul." They need to learn that tweeting comments like that can, at the least, ruin careers. Again, the onus is on the school to make sure these students are punished and disciplined in meaningful ways that teach them important lessons. One hopes that the parents step up, too, but that doesn't remove the burden from the school.
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