Boston becoming like San Francisco? (Pittsfield: job market, construction, tax)

[BPt111]

Boston the next skid row, kensington Philly, San Francisco what going on in Boston ?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhMyQu5ly8Q

[bostongymjunkie]

There are over 100 tents there now.

[msRB311]

Seems like it.

[masssachoicetts]

-Spiraling housing costs that seem to only be getting worse.
-Every day companies are moving in, relocating or adding jobs.
-Lackluster construction in / around the city.
-Horrid zoning laws.
-Some of the worst NIMBYism in the country.
-Mayor and city councilors who do absolutely nothing to help the situation besides making it worse.
-Homelessness and drug use spiraling out of control.

nd on top of it we get this:
Developer: Hi I want to build a 500 foot tower and then provide 200 units of affordable housing and fund a park.
City of Boston: NO! 200ft!!
Developer: If I go 200ft, I lose profits and then cant fund the park or affordable housing. Are you sure?
City of Boston: 185ft and 4.0 FAR!! Ask again and we drop it more!

Literally a joke of a city to see it get THIS bad.

[msRB311]

Yes I was also thinking of the liberalism, techbro companies and out of control housing costs as well.

[MrDee12345]

I think the reason places like Boston and SF are so expensive is because they have a certain dense, walkable uniqueness to them that is somewhat rare for the US. As a result, these cities attract educated, well-traveled people which then causes a raise in housing prices. Then, larger white collar companies see this, they move to these cities and that attracts even more white collar workers. The causes the blue collar to be forced out and live in less interesting places (NH). At the end of the day, can you fault Boston for trying to lurer in big companies that bring in loads of tax dollars?

However, for the people on the poorer side to begin with, they struggle to find affordable housing so many of them move to the street. Couple that with the fact that if any of us were homeless, we'd probably find a way to get to places like Boston, NYC or SF because begging for change is far easier when you have people walking around. Plus, due to guilt from the upper classes for displacing the poorer classes, the cities fund services for the homeless, so I'd imagine they'd come to Boston from places that have services that can help them.

The homeless population in the US isn't any worse than say much of Europe (actually the numbers are lower in the US), but we're unique because they seem to take over swaths of certain cities. If we truly want to even things out a bit, don't blame Boston or SF. Blame Tulsa or Des Moines or even Pittsfield for being unwalkable places with limited services that modern tech companies don't want to move to (because the young and the hip don't want to go there) that result in fewer services for the homeless. If other cities around the US step it up, Boston and SF won't be so unique.


On a completely unrelated matter, the first time I ever saw a homeless tent city in my life was in Nagoya Japan. I used to see tent cities set up in parks in various cities around the country and it shocked me. I had never seen so many homeless in my life, but at the same time I never felt unsafe being in those areas.

[msRB311]

Both cities are also right on the water which is appealing.

[yellowstatus]

Yes, both are increasingly expensive and very desirable cities with a great job market, a wealth of city amenities and natural sights. The haters are welcome to move out to make way for people who want to live here.

[msRB311]

Originally Posted by yellowstatus

Yes, both are increasingly expensive and very desirable cities with a great job market, a wealth of city amenities and natural sights. The haters are welcome to move out to make way for people who want to live here.

Who's hating? I think a lot of people hate what it costs to live here but love the area enough to make it work to stay. I'm sure people also hate seeing these tents lined up with homeless people. Lots to love and some things to hate. That's all. No need to tell people to move just because youre in love with this place and find not a thing wrong.

[Space_League]

Originally Posted by BPt111

what going on in Boston ?

Gee, idk... Could be anything I guess