All of these are factors. Amazon is a huge factor.quote:Originally posted by Nina:
PJ, how much of Seattle's problem is due to Amazon, and how much is part of the general issue with housing costs in cities up and down the Pacific coastline (Vancouver, BC, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco)?
I am in total agreement with you regarding the gentrification of Seattle and the spiraling cost of housing. However, homelessness has been an issue there (and in Portland) since the 1980s (when I lived there) if not earlier. Many of the homeless are there because of friendly laws, and a desire to be homeless by choice. This does not apply to everyone, of course, and most particularly doesn't apply to those who are mentally ill.
But the housing shortage can also be attributed to Asian speculative purchases, as many of the apartments, condominiums and houses are owned by non-US residents and are vacant.
It's not an easy problem to solve.
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pj, citizen-poster, unless specifically noted otherwise.
mod-in-training.
pj@ermosworld∙com
All types of erorrs fixed while you wait.
quote:Originally posted by Daniel:quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:quote:Originally posted by Daniel:quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
The New York Times editorial board wants the deal back.
quote:Those opposed to the New York project — a distinct minority of people in the city and the state — were not without cause for rage. The subways are rickety, the schools are dysfunctional, the rent is too damn high and getting higher. And the deal included $3 billion in tax benefits for a trillion-dollar corporation.
But progressives shouldn’t stand athwart progress, yelling stop. It’s not like that $3 billion can now be applied to city needs, as some seemed to think; it vanished along with the $27 billion in tax revenue that could, in fact, have helped address city needs. If the New York has any hope of remedying its problems, it will need a robust tax base spread across many sectors. Real-world progressive governance requires revenue.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/0...nion&pgtype=Homepage
**** them.
And, apparently, the 70% of New Yorkers who want the Amazon deal.
I read the press release.
quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:quote:Originally posted by Daniel:quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:quote:Originally posted by Daniel:quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
The New York Times editorial board wants the deal back.
quote:Those opposed to the New York project — a distinct minority of people in the city and the state — were not without cause for rage. The subways are rickety, the schools are dysfunctional, the rent is too damn high and getting higher. And the deal included $3 billion in tax benefits for a trillion-dollar corporation.
But progressives shouldn’t stand athwart progress, yelling stop. It’s not like that $3 billion can now be applied to city needs, as some seemed to think; it vanished along with the $27 billion in tax revenue that could, in fact, have helped address city needs. If the New York has any hope of remedying its problems, it will need a robust tax base spread across many sectors. Real-world progressive governance requires revenue.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/0...nion&pgtype=Homepage
**** them.
And, apparently, the 70% of New Yorkers who want the Amazon deal.
I read the press release.
It sounds as if you are angry about living in a democracy. If 70% of the people want something, and it's not unconstitutional, it ought to happen.
quote:Under the deal, Amazon is eligible for a share of Arlington County’s hotel tax revenue, which is expected to go up after the e-commerce giant comes to town. Amazon will receive 15 percent of any increase in Arlington’s Transient Occupancy Tax if the company moves into a specified amount of office space each year.
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http://www.twistandvibrations.blogspot.com/
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pj, citizen-poster, unless specifically noted otherwise.
mod-in-training.
pj@ermosworld∙com
All types of erorrs fixed while you wait.
That comment sounds like a double-edged sword, no? Let's say over 70% of Seattle's residents support levying additional taxes on a class of business entities that also include Amazon.com, and Amazon.com says "**** them" on those taxes, can Amazon.com be said to be angry about domiciling in a democracy?quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
It sounds as if you are angry about living in a democracy. If 70% of the people want something, and it's not unconstitutional, it ought to happen.
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www.PianoRecital.org -- my piano recordings -- China Tune album
quote:Originally posted by Axtremus:That comment sounds like a double-edged sword, no? Let's say over 70% of Seattle's residents support levying additional taxes on a class of business entities that also include Amazon.com, and Amazon.com says "**** them" on those taxes, can Amazon.com be said to be angry about domiciling in a democracy?quote:Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
It sounds as if you are angry about living in a democracy. If 70% of the people want something, and it's not unconstitutional, it ought to happen.
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pj, citizen-poster, unless specifically noted otherwise.
mod-in-training.
pj@ermosworld∙com
All types of erorrs fixed while you wait.