There is a story in the
newspaper today about the City of Worcester Housing Director, Scott Hayman, being put on administrative leave. Before I comment, let me say how untrue it is when someone asks why I hate low to mod income housing. I don't!! My problem, however, is that in Worcester there is an over-reliance on low to mod income projects, when we are well beyond the Commonwealth of Massachusetts required level. We need market-rate housing!!
Same here, I like Scott Hayman, although I have questionned many of Scott's Housing policies and decisions over the past ten years. In fact, about 5 years ago an empty building went out for RFP on Gardner Street, right behind Moynihan's, that was awarded to Main South CDC. About 6 months after the award, I was told that Main South CDC was not interested and I could buy it through direct negotiations, since I owned the abutting empty lot.
About a month later, the Main South CDC changed their mind and now wanted to buy it? I questioned this since the initial RFP stated the winning bidder had to buy the property within either 30 or 60 days? It was now some 7 months later!!! The Executive Office of Neighborhood Services (EONS) disagreed with me and continued with the sale to the Main South CDC until I called the Inspector General, who agreed with me and ordered the property to be rebid. This prompted the Executive Director of the Main South CDC proceeded to call me a "pain in the ass" in Worcester Mag. Evidently asking for terms of an RFP to be enforced, which the Inspector General agreed was the right thing to do, is being a "pain in the ass"?
This one transaction exemplifies the whole problem with the City of Worcester Housing Policy and their over-reliance on CDC's, whose main function is to create more low to mod income housing in the City of Worcester. If Jahn, I or you had won the bid, you can bet that that we would not have gotten any extension to put up the cash to buy the property.
Exactly what the City of Worcester is looking into?? Don't know, but I have a couple of requests:
- Review all LDA (Land Disposition Agreements) that have been signed the past five-seven years on properties conveyed via the RFP (Request for Proposal) process. Look no furter then the former Royal Linen property on Mason Street that was conveyed over 4 years ago, are they in compliance with the LDA?
- Review the financial statements of the 5 NRSA's. How can the Beacon Brightly NRSA invest practically all of their monies to benefit the Main South CDC?
- Review the policy, whereby a private party partners with a local non-profit partner, moves the property temporarily into the non-profits contol so that they can get EPA Brownfield Grant monies only to transfer it back when the clean-up is done. This was done on Mason Street and is proposed to be done at City Builders. Is this legal?
- How do the same contractors time and time again get all the contracting work, who by the way, many of which are not based in Worcester?
Maybe this is a good time for the City of Worcester to review the whole direction of our Housing Policy. In 2003, we paid RKG some $25,000 to do a Housing Study and it was awesome. They nailed it and told the City of Worcester it was over-reliant on the CDC's and their quest to build low to mod income housing developments everywhere. RKG even suggested that we tear down three deckers to provide off street parking for the neighborhood, versus spending $600,000 to rehab a three decker.
At that time their conclusions were attacked, by those with a vested interest to see the current policy continue, and the City of Worcester caved, disregarded all the recommendations in the study and continued to do everything that RKG told us not to do. Check out my map. City Manager O'Brien and the City Council should not pay for another study, but merely dust off the RKG study, read the conclusion and change the whole direction of our Housing policy.
Lastly get ready for the wave of people, the same ones who attacked the RKG Study without knowing any of the facts that need the gravy train of Federal and State monies to keep building more low to mod income housing to support their livelihood, come to Scott's defense .
Worcester's latest low-mod income property development. According to the website: This project is designed to serve single residents or couples through the construction of 12 one bedroom apartments on floors two to four at affordable rates in addition to providing 4 commercial/studio/retail spaces on the street level. There is a deficit of both in this target area.
