Atlanta’s housing crisis: stop making it worse with bad arguments against growth (Roswell: townhouse, neighborhoods)

[AcidSnake]

Originally Posted by fourthwarden

They certainly don't help, though I don't have any numbers on them. Hasn't this been an issue on the west side? Why wouldn't we be able to talk about them?

The usual culprits are Corporations...to include the banking/finance industry and the news media.

The information is typically omitted, misrepresented, and watered down into outright fraudulence.

If there is any real information to be gleaned, it's usually relegated to the so-called "fringe" media outlets.

Which is pretty much anyone not co-signed by the government and the Big 6.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by jsvh

I don't think it is quite the disaster you think. Lots of very high-end homes in midtown back up to high-rises.

And yeah, you are right, the discussion is nowhere near allowing high-rises to be built everywhere. That is what it would take if you really wanted to get housing supply a boost and bring rent costs down. But we are just to the point of fighting F-you-I-got-mine NIMBYs to allow duplexes to be built legally in neighborhoods that originally had them. Allowing high-rises or cement plans to be built everywhere is not on the table.

In modern zoning, there are transition zones. So you can't put a 40 story tower next to a SFH, even if it is zoned high rise. Maybe you can put a 5 story tower there.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by fourthwarden

Good. We need the housing.

They are sure dumping a lot of additional traffic and congestion on the the longtime homeowners. Would they have invested in the community in the first place if they knew this was coming?

[fourthwarden]

Originally Posted by arjay57

They are sure dumping a lot of additional traffic and congestion on the the longtime homeowners. Would they have invested in the community in the first place if they knew this was coming?

They live in a major metro. That land always had a chance of being something more than quaint not much. If they wanted assurances of no development, they should have moved out further.

If they don't want to deal with traffic, they should be living somewhere less successful, use transit, insist on more alternatives to driving.

Besides, those people who come in now will have just as much chance and opportunity to be longtime homeowners themselves.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by fourthwarden

They live in a major metro. That land always had a chance of being something more than quaint not much. If they wanted assurances of no development, they should have moved out further.

If they don't want to deal with traffic, they should be living somewhere less successful, use transit, insist on more alternatives to driving.

Besides, those people who come in now will have just as much chance and opportunity to be longtime homeowners themselves.

You are talking about jamming 20 new houses onto a 20 acre tract in an area that is clearly suburban. A number of the proposed new houses would have lots that are not even one full acre. What about people speeding down what used to be a quiet cul-de-sac to reach this massive new subdivision?

How about the loss of hundreds of beautiful old trees? What about the water run-off from all the new impervious surface? And don't forget this site backs right up to a school.

There's no transit in this area, even though the residents have been paying for it for 45 years.

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Allowing high-rises or cement plans to be built everywhere is not on the table.

Good, then having a zoning law that ensures that is not a problem. I have no problem simplifying zoning, but getting rid of it? Not a chance. I know that I don't want to live in a city of high rises and apartment blocks. What I love about Atlanta is it's mixture of dense areas and SFH neighborhoods in town. Why would anyone want to eliminate what gives Atlanta its character? If anyone wants Atlanta to be like NYC, then move to NYC. Don't try to make Atlanta like NYC.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

What I love about Atlanta is it's mixture of dense areas and SFH neighborhoods in town. Why would anyone want to eliminate what gives Atlanta its character?

Most of that "character" was built before the zoning laws and much of it is now illegal / out of compliance with the current zoning code. That is a key piece of what we need to fix.

Atlanta needs to significantly simplify it's zoning codes for sure. Things like legalizing missing middle housing in our neighborhoods is a must.

Also, how sad is it that this place will be required to fight zoning to build without parking meanwhile you could go build a concrete plant, stip mall, or storage facilitiy most places along the Beltline just fine as long as you include plenty of parking.

Serious fixes in zoning are needed are needed. We need big support for Tim Keane / Ryan Gravel's zoning rewrite.

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Also, how sad is it that this place will be required to fight zoning to build without parking meanwhile you could go build a concrete plant, stip mall, or storage facilitiy most places along the Beltline just fine as long as you include plenty of parking. [/url]

Not a fan of plants or storage facilities around the Beltline. Zoning should take care of that. As for the office building with no parking, that should be fine, provided that they aren't taking parking from elsewhere for their people like many other places who have limited parking. I mean, they're going to be severely limiting who would want to go there, but that's their prerogative.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

Not a fan of plants or storage facilities around the Beltline. Zoning should take care of that.

But zoning is not "taking care of that". It is making it worse. You would have to fight city hall to get it rezoned if you wanted to build residential there, but to build a concrete plant or storage facility is fine. That is the point. It needs a major overhaul and simplification. Atlanta was getting built better back before we had our zoning codes. Right now the zoning code is doing more harm than good.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

Not a fan of plants or storage facilities around the Beltline. Zoning should take care of that.

The city is trying to change the zoning laws to prohibit storage facilities within the Beltline overlay. There are several problems with that. For one thing, it just pushes storage facilities into neighborhoods adjacent to the Beltline overlay. Also, if you're focusing on building scads of apartments along the Beltline, you've got to provide storage facilities for people to store their stuff. And if those facilities are not nearby, people will be forced to drive there.

It makes more sense to put storage facilities near where people live, so that if they need something they can walk over and get it.