When it comes to truly looking out for the public's interest.
Related: Absentee Slumlords
Actually, they shill for slumlords. They just call them "developers."
"Critics push for repeal of 40B; Ballot question targets affordable housing law" by Kathleen Burge, Globe Staff | October 17, 2010
On Nov. 2, voters will have their say when they decide whether to scrap the legislation on ballot Question 2....
So what side of the agenda is the Globe pushing?
John Belskis, the Arlington retiree who is chairman of the Coalition to Repeal 40B, and other Question 2 supporters argue that the law doesn’t work, since Massachusetts is one of the country’s most expensive housing markets. The group has fought against 40B for a decade, working through three legislative sessions to try to rewrite the law, said Belskis, who also argues that the law benefits developers more than local communities. Chapter 40B doesn’t help the working poor who may not earn enough to afford a mortgage, Belskis said.
That has never stopped Massachusetts Democrats from biting into and buying the official orthodoxy and propaganda.
The law has been vilified by some who argue that too little oversight allows developers of affordable housing projects to reap larger profits than allowable — the law caps profits, depending on the type of development — by exaggerating costs.
FLASHBACK:
A state Senate panel today will recommend tougher measures to crack down on developers who abuse the Massachusetts affordable-housing program by keeping excess profits for themselves instead of returning the money, as required, to cities and towns.
No wonder our towns are going broke!
Everybody takes their hunk of flesh, huh?
The controversial program, known as Chapter 40B, has been marred by builders who inflate expenses, underreport profits, and deprive municipalities of millions of dollars, said Senator Marc R. Pacheco of Taunton, a Democrat who is chairman of the Post Audit and Oversight Committee, which is scheduled to issue the findings of a months-long study this afternoon....
But TAXES HAVE TO GO UP!
Pacheco said: "Every penny that ought to be recouped for the taxpayer should be, and it should be done as soon as possible."
Yeah, sure. Why should it have to come to that, ya bunch of thieves?
At a September hearing before the committee, state Inspector General Gregory Sullivan testified that no mechanism existed to track which projects had been certified for financial accuracy....
As a result of his inquiry, Sullivan found "developer profits were routinely and substantially understated. The results, in many cases, were windfall profits to the developers which deprived the respective municipalities of the excess profits."
The law, although spurring the development of 26,000 units of affordable housing since 1969, has been an irritant for many communities that have lost control over development....
(Sigh, sob)
Pacheco said Chapter 40B will remain controversial because the law allows builders to bypass jealously guarded zoning restrictions. However, he said, the program "at least should be something that is done the way it was intended to be done, in terms of accountability and profits going back to the communities if it exceeds a minimum number."
Despite its flaws, the Post Audit committee concluded, "Chapter 40B has proven to be an innovative and effective method to encourage developers to build housing and at the same time meet the demand for affordable housing in Massachusetts."
Even though they are sticking it to us!
Does a rape victim thank the rapist?
--more--"
Globe's recap for this piece:
Inspector General Gregory W. Sullivan reviewed a small number of 40B projects and found that developers underreported their profits; his office estimated that $100 million is owed to communities because of developer abuse, according to Sullivan’s 2009 letter.
But a large group of supporters of the law, from religious leaders to business and environmental groups, argues that repealing 40B would be disastrous, especially in an economy where many are struggling to pay rent and mortgages.
That is where the RED FLAGS GO UP for me because I'M TIRED of the WOLF-HOLLERING LIES!
All four gubernatorial candidates oppose Question 2....
Why bother with them then?
The group formed to oppose Question 2 released a letter last week...
Supporters of the law argue that....
The group opposed to repealing 40B has raised — and spent — far more money that those supporting Question 2.
You SEE WHO the MONEY and GLOBE are LINING UP with in their "balanced -- and nuanced -- report, right?
That should SPEAK VOLUMES TO YOU, voters!
The Committee Against Repealing the Housing Law has raised $688,838 this year to fight Question 2, according to reports filed with the state Office of Campaign & Political Finance.
Who funded them, and how many foreclosures would that have forestalled?
Two of the largest contributors, Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association, a nonprofit advocacy group for affordable housing, and the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, each donated $100,000.
But it is okay when agenda-pushing dupes are used -- as long as they don't oppose the agenda.
Then they are insurgents and the money is dirty.
The group that got Question 2 on the ballot, The Repeal 40B Ballot Question Committee , raised $8,236 in the same period, according to records filed with the state.
Kind of a DAVID and GOLIATH situation, huh?
However, the organization listed a contribution last year of $283,900 from the Chelmsford-based Slow Growth Initiative, the cost of getting 91,200 signatures so the question appears on the ballot.
Yeah, they are hiding money, right.
What a pathetic PoS shill the Globe has become.
Dottie Vaillancourt is a school nurse and a single parent who moved into a Worcester apartment with her son, now 11. She wanted to buy a place but she could barely afford rent, which seemed to be increasing. When she heard about a housing lottery in South Grafton for a 40B townhouse, she applied. Four years ago, she moved into the three-bedroom townhouse that she bought for $155,000.
Vaillancourt gets frustrated when she hears 40B opponents say the program doesn’t help people find affordable housing.
“I was definitely one of those people that was in the middle,’’ she said. “I had a good job but I just couldn’t afford the housing prices at the time. This program gave me the opportunity to own a home.’’
Maybe you should be LOOKING at the BANKS and the BAILOUTS that were MEANT TO KEEP HOME PRICES HIGH so YOU CAN'T BUY ONE (even if they gave you a loan, which they are not)!
I mean, if HOME PRICES FALL THROUGH the FLOOR and a few thousand will get you one free and clear that does NOT HELP MORTGAGE-HOLDING, INTEREST-DEMANDING BANKS!
--more--"
Also see: Globe Editorial Massachusetts needs housing — so vote no on Question 2
General rule, readers: If the one-sided, insulting, agenda-pushing Globe is for it you vote against it, and vice-versa.
Of course, the Globe has ALWAYS HAD YOUR INTERESTS and CONCERNS at heart voters.
Right?
Update:
"In a recent Globe poll, 24 percent of those asked backed repealing the law, 38 percent opposed it, and 38 percent said they didn’t know enough to say"
Then SAY YES!
