Thursday, December 17, 2009

The People of Fullerton Give Away Millions of Dollars to Help the Poor


Well, not exactly. By a margin of 3-1 (with one abstention - Nelson) the city council of Fullerton approved a $9,500,000 32-unit condo project. There are just a few problems that should be pointed out.



First, let's talk about the volume of variances which the Olson Company was granted. The reason there are zoning requirements is so that developers don't squeeze 20 parking stalls where there is only room for 10, or so that when I am sitting on my bed I can't see directly into my neighbor’s bedroom. If they couldn't fit the units and parking, they should have scaled back the project to 32 units. That would have provided more parking, open space, and distance between opposing windows. The zoning is in place to protect us from developer whims.


Next, let's talk about Councilman Jones. He is wrong to think that the City of Fullerton is required by law to provide low- to moderate-income housing. The City is required to do it because they take money from the Feds and State which comes with strings attached that include providing these types of housing.

Then there are the association dues. The VP for Olson said the dues are being factored in at $200 per unit. Who will seed the 10%-20% reserves necessary to get the association's finances started? There will be landscaping and various contractor needs from the first day that the first condo is sold.

Lastly, consider the qualifications to purchase one of these homes. I have strong, solid income and excellent credit. Even I would have a hard time getting a bank to give me a Deed of Trust (should be called a Deed of I Don't Trust You) because the banks don't want to loan money right now.  According to the Olson Company, their target group is capped at $70,000 meaning any household earning more than that will not qualify.  But, as Councilman Jones points out, if an owner wins the lottery, they do not have to move out.  I'm sure that's a big selling point!

You and I are now on the hook for this lovely gift that our top-notch council approved. Are we going to keep letting the council (through the Redevelopment Agency) squander our earnings? Did you know that when an area of the City is found to have "blight" (figure that one out - it is not what you and I might think), the Redevelopment Agency gets first grab at the taxes generated in that zone. Our schools, police, and fire all suffer from the greed of Redevelopment.


The big secret which isn't that secret is that this will cost us the initial $12,000,000 spent to purchase the property and $9,500,000 to build on the property for a total cost of $21,500,000! Then, Olson sells each of the 34 units at $275,000 each for a profit of $9,350,000. Plus the City will kick in an additional $500,000 as needed to cover extra construction costs.

We started off with 52 low-income apartments and are left with 34 moderate-income condos. What a HUGE waste!
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1 comment:

  1. Greg SebournDecember 17, 2009 at 11:50 AM

    I forgot to mention the real kicker! With each new development the developer is obligated to provide a percentage of the new homes for low and moderate income families. Or they can pay a fee so that the City can do it for them. All the developer would need to do is give up their HUGE profit margin on one home in the development to make a big difference. Then you and I wouldn't get stuck shelling out $21M-$22M for 34 moderate income homes in place of the 52 low-income homes destroyed with 52 families displaced.

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Greg Sebourn

The Beauty of a Storm

The Beauty of a Storm
Orange County, Ca.

My Grandma - A Eulogy

LET'S TALK ABOUT 1914 FOR A MOMENT.



FOR STARTERS, GRANDMA WAS BORN TUESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 1914 IN HER FAMILY'S ATWOOD RANCH HOUSE.



IT IS WORTH NOTING THOSE ALSO BORN IN 1914:

JACK LALANNE

JOE DIMAGGIO

DANNY THOMAS



AND WHO DIED IN 1914:

JOHN MUIR, THE FAMOUS NATURALIST FOR WHICH NUMEROUS ROADS, PARKS, HOTELS, AND NATURE RESERVES ARE NAMED.



IT IS ALSO WORTH NOTING THAT IN 1914 WOODROW WILSON SIGNS MOTHER'S DAY PROCLAMATION AND BABE RUTH MAKES HIS MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT WITH THE RED SOX. MOTHER'S DAY AND BASEBALL- TWO OF MY FAVORITES!! (PERHAPS HER NICKNAME "BABE" CAME FROM BABE RUTH???)



GRANDMA WAS BORN INTO A PERIOD OF TIME FILLED WITH TURMOIL. IN JUNE OF 1914 ARCHDUKE FRANZS FERDINAND WAS ASSASSINATED. WITHIN ONE MONTH WORLD WAR I RAGED ACROSS EUROPE. TWO DAYS AFTER HER BIRTH HOWEVER, GERMAN AND BRITISH TROOPS INTERRUPTED WWI TO CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS. (PERHAPS THEY PAUSE KNOWING THAT A GREAT WOMAN WAS BORNE) WORLD WAR I CONTINUED UNTIL THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES IN 1919.



ALTHOUGH SHE WAS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD, SHE SAW THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS CREATED AND THE 19TH AMENDMENT WAS APPROVED BY THE U.S. CONGRESS GUARANTEEING THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN TO VOTE.



SHE LIVED THROUGH MANY NOTABLE EVENTS. LIKE THE 1933 LONG BEACH EARTHQUAKE OR WHEN ATWOOD FLOODED ALONG WITH MOST OF ORANGE COUNTY IN 1938 AND THE FLOOD-WATERS CLAIMED MORE THAN 50 PEOPLE, 43 OF WHICH WERE FROM ATWOOD! ALL OF THIS DURING A TIME THAT WE READ ABOUT IN SCHOOL AND KNOWN AS "THE GREAT DEPRESSION". SOMEWHERE IN ALL OF THAT SHE FOUND THE LOVE OF HER LIFE, GRANDPA LEO, GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL, GOT MARRIED, AND HAD KIDS!



THEN THERE WAS WORLD WAR II. FROM PEARL HARBOR TO HIROSHIMA, GRANDMA WAS RAISING MY UNCLE BOB AND MOM ARLINE. WITH AIR-RAID SIRENS AND BLACKOUTS SHE WAS A WIFE AND MOTHER. WHAT A TIME TO RAISE CHILDREN! I BET GRANDMA'S PARENTS WERE ABEL TO TELL HER A THING OR TWO ABOUT RAISING KIDS IN WARTIME.



GRANDMA WAS THERE WHEN THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA HELD THEIR 3RD ANNUAL NATIONAL JAMBOREE IN 1953. SHE SAW AIRBASES OPEN IN '42 AND CLOSE IN '99. SHE WATCHED WALTER KNOTT START UP HIS BERRY FARM AND WALT DISNEY TURN ORANGE GROVES AND STRAWBERRY PATCHES INTO DISNEYLAND!



SHE SAW THE HORSE AND CARRIAGE FADE AWAY INTO HISTORY AND SPACE TRAVEL EXPLODE BEFORE HER WITH THE FIRST LUNAR LANDING. JUST IMAGINE HOW MUCH TECHNOLOGY HAS CHANGED OVER THE LAST 100 YEARS. FROM TUBE RECTIFIERS TO SUPERCONDUCTORS; FROM TRANS-ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH CABLES TO SATELLITE TV.



SHE SAW MORE IN HER 93 YEARS THAN MOST OF US WILL EVER READ ABOUT, LET ALONE LIVE THROUGH!



OF THOSE 93 YEARS IT IS MY HONOR TO HAVE BEEN HER GRANDSON FOR 35 OF THEM. SHE WAS MY MOTHER WHEN MOM HAD TO WORK. SHE WIPED MY NOSE AND PUT FOOD IN MY MOUTH. SHE LET ME PLAY WITH GRANDPA EVEN THOUGH SHE NEEDED HIM TO TAKE HER TO THE STORE. SHE WAS MY GRANDMA AND I WILL MISS HER IMMENSELY.



JUST LOOK AROUND THIS ROOM; SHE DID THIS. SHE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR BRINGING SO MANY GOOD PEOPLE INTO THIS WORLD AND TOGETHER TODAY. THIS IS HER LEGACY.



A Dedication To My Loving Wife, Stacey. Thank you for all you do for me!

Brad Paisley - I Thought I Loved You Then


I remember trying not to stare the night that I first met you
You had me mesmerized
3 weeks later in the front porch light taking 45 min to kiss you goodnight
I hadn’t told you yet but I thought I loved you then

Chorus
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like a river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day
And I thought I loved you then.

I remember taking you back to right where I first met you
You were so surprised
There were people around
But I didn’t care I got down on one knee right there
And once again I thought I loved you then

Chorus
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like a river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day
And I thought I loved you then.

I can just see you with a baby on the way
I can just see you when your hair is turning gray
What I can’t see is how I’m ever gonna love you more
But I’ve said that before.

Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Well look back some day at this moment that we’re in
And I'll look at you and say I thought I loved you then
And I thought I loved you then...