APS Sinking Ship

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Columbia Pike is getting several more big buildings. All are market rate, though, which I was glad to see.

Yup. And doubtful any kids will be living in them, so that’s a plus on the one hand for keeping overcrowding manageable. If MC kids do end up living there, it’s exactly where we don’t need them - the Fleet zone, which along with Oakridge already has the lowest FRL rates in SA.

The one that is close to completion right now is at Mason and the Pike - that's in Barcroft. And there's supposed to be a plan for townhomes just off Taylor St S.

Centro is going to be an extended stay hotel, for now, right? The other two buildings described in the recent arlnow article are in the fleet zone. As for townhouses, aren’t there neighborhoods off the pike where county s pike plan basically forbids that type of structure from being built? So much for the missing middle.

[Anonymous]

The pike plan is not designed for the missing middle. The affordable housing contribution must be for 60% ami or lower. That is not missing middle. Lee highway is only looking at missing middle according to their docs. Only on the pike are you required to have housing for the poorest people.

That said, costs to live on the pike are much lower than elsewhere, so more of the missing middle live around the pike. It is just cheaper. And will stay that way, at least west of glebe.

[Anonymous]

I can’t see a lot of kids in centro or trafalgar flats. 2 bedrooms are teeny.

Besides, the next phases of Columbia hills are on the way and they are mostly family housing and they will dwarf anything marker rate. Affordable housing developers are just waiting for the right time to expand their old buildings and infill on the western pike.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can’t see a lot of kids in centro or trafalgar flats. 2 bedrooms are teeny.

Besides, the next phases of Columbia hills are on the way and they are mostly family housing and they will dwarf anything marker rate. Affordable housing developers are just waiting for the right time to expand their old buildings and infill on the western pike.

I would guess most of Barcroft Apts is 2 bedroom and that has hundreds and hundreds of children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pike plan is not designed for the missing middle. The affordable housing contribution must be for 60% ami or lower. That is not missing middle. Lee highway is only looking at missing middle according to their docs. Only on the pike are you required to have housing for the poorest people.

That said, costs to live on the pike are much lower than elsewhere, so more of the missing middle live around the pike. It is just cheaper. And will stay that way, at least west of glebe.

Do you have a link handy for lee highway planning docs? Kinda funny that APAH VP lives up there and is on the pike revitalization committee, but mostly it’s sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pike plan is not designed for the missing middle. The affordable housing contribution must be for 60% ami or lower. That is not missing middle. Lee highway is only looking at missing middle according to their docs. Only on the pike are you required to have housing for the poorest people.

That said, costs to live on the pike are much lower than elsewhere, so more of the missing middle live around the pike. It is just cheaper. And will stay that way, at least west of glebe.

It’s cheaper because no one living there has the disposable income that would attract business and employers that would make it more desirable an area. Nor does the county want it to gentrify. It’s self-reinforcing to then put only low income housing there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pike plan is not designed for the missing middle. The affordable housing contribution must be for 60% ami or lower. That is not missing middle. Lee highway is only looking at missing middle according to their docs. Only on the pike are you required to have housing for the poorest people.

That said, costs to live on the pike are much lower than elsewhere, so more of the missing middle live around the pike. It is just cheaper. And will stay that way, at least west of glebe.

I’m the missing middle. I own along the western pike because it’s all I can afford. If the schools were better when we bought we probably wouldn’t have been able to afford Arlington. It’s a double-edged sword, isn’t it?

[Anonymous]

When they say “ missing middle”
I suspect they ( boomers) mean housing in north Arlington for their kids and grandkids.

[Anonymous]

I am PP that commented on the pike plan. I too am missing middle and so are my friends. We live just off the pike because we cannot afford anything else. But my home isn’t appreciating much either. So no nest egg. And I am very disappointed with my kid’s school and can’t afford better. I have no amenities near me. I can’t walk down the street at night because the pike around 4 mile run is dangerous at night. I can’t find a place to park my car because there is insufficient parking. Lots of trash and a bit dingy around me.

I would like a little gentrification.

[Anonymous]

I went to a Lee highway alliance meeting. Any documents talking about affordability are qualified as missing middle. Not housing for poor people. They are not wanted. They don’t want anything resembling Columbia pike. They want a highway that caters to the wealthy people that live there and their car culture with diverse building styles and trees. That is the opposite of the pike, designed to be car free, reserved only for the poor, and cookie cutter architecture with zero trees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am PP that commented on the pike plan. I too am missing middle and so are my friends. We live just off the pike because we cannot afford anything else. But my home isn’t appreciating much either. So no nest egg. And I am very disappointed with my kid’s school and can’t afford better. I have no amenities near me. I can’t walk down the street at night because the pike around 4 mile run is dangerous at night. I can’t find a place to park my car because there is insufficient parking. Lots of trash and a bit dingy around me.

I would like a little gentrification.

There definitely seems to be winners and losers so far in the Pike gentrification. If you live east of Glebe or maybe even Mason, your part of the Pike is gentrified. The rest is not so lucky yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to a Lee highway alliance meeting. Any documents talking about affordability are qualified as missing middle. Not housing for poor people. They are not wanted. They don’t want anything resembling Columbia pike. They want a highway that caters to the wealthy people that live there and their car culture with diverse building styles and trees. That is the opposite of the pike, designed to be car free, reserved only for the poor, and cookie cutter architecture with zero trees.

The Puke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When they say “ missing middle”
I suspect they ( boomers) mean housing in north Arlington for their kids and grandkids.

Pretty much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When they say “ missing middle”
I suspect they ( boomers) mean housing in north Arlington for their kids and grandkids.

Pretty much.

Maybe their kids can come and live in South Arlington. Then they'd care about the schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When they say “ missing middle”
I suspect they ( boomers) mean housing in north Arlington for their kids and grandkids.

Pretty much.

Maybe their kids can come and live in South Arlington. Then they'd care about the schools.

I think most NA parents care deeply about SA schools, if nothing else if they improved it would likely alleviate overcrowding in the long term.

Na parents are happy to send money, resources, build new schools, whatever it takes. Sending their kids is a nonstarter both b/c of logistics and parental expectation. That is unsurprising and not going to change.

So absent busing, what do SA schools need? Is it simply the AH lobby dumping more and more ESOL students into the system?