The members of the Martha’s Vineyard Housing Bank Review Committee pulled no punches as they held their first meeting Thursday afternoon.
The newly formed advisory panel, consisting of representatives from all six Island towns, got straight to work as Chilmark select board chair Jim Malkin was tapped as committee chair, and Edgartown town administrator James Hagerty was selected as minute taker, meeting scheduler, and point person for contact.
The purpose of the committee is clear, Malkin said.The committee will be wading through and considering amendments to the Housing Bank Act, which will then be submitted to the Island’s select boards for approval with the hopes that the finalized bill will be ratified by the state.
Malkin said he’s already been approached by some Islanders attempting to lobby against the Housing Bank, and urged committee members to remain on track with efforts in executing the common goal.
“There is an overwhelming sense on this Island and in all six towns that the Housing Bank is something very important,” he said. “We don’t need to get into why we need a Housing Bank, It’s a given.”
“The towns have voted [for it] … This is not going to be a forum for debate or position statements,” he added.
Malkin suggested that the committee connect with Senator Cyr and Rep. Fernandes on amendment suggestions, in addition to being open to receiving and reviewing submissions from Island residents. Malkin said submissions should be sent to Hagerty no later than 48 hours prior to meetings, for fair consideration.
The committee agreed to move forward with full force, with plans on scheduling as many meetings as necessary, to expedite the process. Quoting a term used by the Royal Navy, Malkin said the aim is to “proceed with all deliberate speed.”
“That’s our charge,” he said. “We want to hurry up and get there, but we want to do it right; we don’t want to make mistakes.”
Malkin acknowledged work well done by members of the Coalition to Create the Housing Bank in dragging “all the horses to water and getting them to drink.”
The next HBRC will take place on Wednesday, July 13, at 5:30 pm.
Excellent.
“We don’t need to get into why we need a Housing Bank, It’s a given…The towns have voted [for it]…This is not going to be a forum for debate or position statements…”
Oh, of course not. Why would it? Not when there are too many personal agendas pushing for it without a care for future generations. There are a couple thousand islanders who voted against this scheme of taxing more from home buyers, but they’ve already been shut down by those who can and do shut it down. Why bother verbalizing that people will be shut up?
I read a real estate article in this newspaper recently about how swimming pools can be considered necessities, (seriously), and they certainly can increase the value of a property.
So build ’em, folks. Lots of ’em. Many in the real estate community came out and publicly endorsed the Housing Bank. Why wouldn’t they? Say, why don’t we build more homes with swimming pools? Real estate professionals can tell you. Why don’t we redo our kitchens? Why don’t we put on another bedroom? And bathroom? Oh, and we are going to tax anyone who can afford to buy it– so that the people who are going to build these “necessities” that rich people can afford, can live here, too. We’re not talking about police, nurses, and teachers. Pollution? Traffic? Bigger schools? Beaches getting filled to capacity at 10AM? What, me worry? I have another $4000 mediocre cliffs painting I can sell.
The forum for debate was shutdown well before now, without even news coverage of what could possibly go wrong down the road with a local committee using other peoples’ money to decide someone else’s fate, not to mention how many more workforce people (and their families) islanders think this tiny island can hold before it sinks into its own cesspool.
Yes, those who questioned and came to be opposed to the HB because it very well can make the island worse off, with too many trying to get a piece of running a restaurant or building a pool, don’t want to get into it anymore. They saw what happened when they voiced their concerns BEFORE the gullible island swallowed the “it’s-for-nurses-and-teachers-excuse” and voted for it. There was (and still is) a lot of kvetching about how if you’re against the housing bank you’re against affordable housing for the actual ESSENTIAL workforce. No one is going to bother to tell you now about how the island can’t possibly house all the “workforce” (those in the trades catering to the wealthy). Certainly not those who pushed the loudest and hardest, pretending it wasn’t self-interest that drove them. Why take more verbal abuse from those who pushed to shut down discussions and failed to consider justified concerns? Just tell the naysayers they’re elitist and don’t care about housing our police force and their families. That’ll shut ’em up.
All one has to do is look at who pushed the hardest for this and what their personal, self-interest, here-and-now agenda is to understand why this going to be steamrolled through. But you won’t hear me yakking about it. (wink, wink) Sometimes people get exactly what they deserve and then wonder what happened.