[ Statement of the Monroe County Green Party below ]
The developer of Canterbury House Apartments plans to stay on schedule with the project despite vocal and emotional opposition in the community.
"We're 100 percent committed to starting construction in the middle of July and bringing much-needed affordable housing to Bloomington," said Jeff Kittle, vice president of the Indianapolis firm Herman Associates.
But Kittle said he doesn't yet know how the company will deal with one remaining obstacle: 19-year-old Tracy "Dolphin" McNeely, who has occupied a tree on the property since March 22 and insists she won't move.
"To be honest, I've spent the last several weeks focusing on our June 1 meeting with the economic development commission and our meeting last night with the county council," Kittle said. "I haven't really thought about the young woman that's up in the tree."
Herman Associates plans to buy the 50-acre site from current owner Bill Brown and build a 208-unit apartment complex on the land, on the east side of Ind. 37 between Second and Third streets.
Opponents say the wooded property, dotted with sinkholes and sometimes called Brown's Woods or Stony Springs, is environmentally sensitive and inappropriate for high-density residential development.
They object to the use of tax-exempt county bonds and federal income tax credits to help with financing of the project, terming it "corporate welfare." And they say the rents that will be charged are too steep for many area residents.
Herman Associates got its final approval Tuesday when the Monroe County Council voted 5-2 to issue $10 million in tax-free bonds for the project. The county economic development commission recommended the bond issue June 1.
The council vote outraged a crowd of project opponents, who disrupted the meeting after the issue was decided.
"I went to school in Bloomington, both as an undergraduate and I have an MBA from the Kelley School of Business," said Kittle, who attended the meeting. "One thing that makes Bloomington a special place is all the input and concern people have for their community."
Previously, the Indiana Housing Finance Authority selected the Canterbury House Apartments project as eligible for the bond financing. And the state agency approved the project for $4.26 million in federal affordable-housing income tax credits over 10 years.
The bonds will be issued by the county and purchased by investors, who will accept a lower interest rate because the bonds are tax-exempt. Herman Associates will repay the investors over a 30-year period, with the lower rate reducing the overall cost of the project, Kittle said.
The county's involvement ends with the issuance of the bonds; it has no financial liability for seeing to it that they are repaid, county officials say.
As for the federal tax credits, the developer can sell them to a financial backer, typically a corporation or investor with a large federal tax liability.
As a condition for the tax breaks, Kittle said, Herman Associates and any future owner of the complex will keep 174 of the 208 apartments as affordable housing for at least 40 years.
The units will be available to tenants who make no more than 60 percent of the median family income for Monroe County. Rents are restricted by a federal formula: currently $659 for a three-bedroom apartment.
Kittle said it's the tax-free bonds and tax credits that make the project economically viable.
"Without the tax-exempt financing, our rents would be approximately $200 higher per unit," he said.
He said the company would consider developing the land without the incentives. "But the project would not be as nice," he said. "It would probably be more dense and of lower quality."
But Peter Drake, a member of the Monroe County Green Party, which has been active in opposing the project, said there's too little accountability for such development incentives.
"One of the many problems with corporate welfare is that, unlike elected governments, corporations do not have to reveal their inner workings, their decision-making process or how much profit they're going to make," he said.
"We have no way of knowing if this bond issue is determining whether this development will be profitable or not — or just whether it will be profitable enough."
He said there's a lack of fairness to giving tax breaks to big businesses that espouse laudable goals.
"People who work at Wal-Mart don't get tax waivers no matter how nice they are," he said.
Drake said the project points to the need for Green Party members to become active in local issues, including planning and zoning.
County commissioner Brian O'Neill said the situation suggests the county needs a comprehensive inventory of environmentally sensitive areas that should be protected from development. But such an inventory would be expensive, he said, and it would come too late to influence decisions about Stony Springs.
O'Neill said officials could be on shaky legal ground if they tried to block construction on areas that are zoned for commercial or high-density residential use, as the Canterbury Apartments site is.
The Monroe County Green Party opposes the Canterbury House Apartment development proposed by Mr. Bill Brown (owner) and Herman Associates (developers). Among the values that unite us as Greens are a concern for social justice and wise stewardship of the environment, advocacy of grassroots democracy, and a focus on the future. We believe that the proposed development and the manner in which it has been pursued contradict these values.
The proposed development would occupy 15 acres of a geologically sensitive karst area commonly referred to as Stony Springs. According to the Bloomington Environmental Commission, a body commissioned by the City of Bloomington, there are eight sinkholes in this area as well as a cave, springs, and a surface karst feature called a blind valley with a 285-acre watershed. Due to these unique characteristics of the Stony Springs area, an intensive development such as the proposed apartment complex could adversely affect the groundwater in the area. According to the BEC report of Nov. 13, 2000, there would very likely be adverse effects on the groundwater in three of eight sinkholes in the area. Additionally, runoff water would not be properly filtered before entering the groundwater and so pollutants such as gas, oil, anti-freeze, pesticides, and herbicides would likely be released into a geologically sensitive area. Karst areas are already known to lack natural water filters more common in other areas; thus, this proposed development would send pollutants almost directly into the groundwater supply. The Stony Springs woods are a precious natural resource for the Bloomington community and they should therefore be protected from development. The MCGP agrees with the assessment of the Bloomington Environmental Commission, which was, unfortunately, ignored by the County Planning Commission, that this area is unsuitable for this development.
We are also concerned with the government's proposed ten million dollar bond supporting this development as a future source of affordable housing for the residents of our community. The proposed lease rates of the property are not affordable by most people's standards. The original plan was aimed at making the apartments affordable for someone making $15 an hour. But, especially given the steady disappearance of high-paying manufacturing jobs from our area due to NAFTA and other factors, jobs paying considerably less than that amount are commonplace. At the proposed rate of $469/mo. for a one bedroom or $569 for a two bedroom apartment, an individual making $8 an hour would have to spend well over a third of his or her pretax income on rent alone. The proposed development would be located 5 miles from downtown in an area without pedestrian or bike paths, and no bus service is currently planned. Thus, residents would need cars, making residing there that much less affordable.
In addition, given the current abundance of apartment units in Bloomington, why should our tax dollars be used to subsidize new construction in the first place? Why not meet Bloomington's need for a greater quantity of affordable housing by subsidizing occupancy of existing units, so meeting this need doesn't entail subsidizing suburban sprawl and attendant destruction of forests, farmland, etc.? Taxpayers have the right to expect that their tax money will be spent in ways that will be beneficial to them. The Canterbury House project would instead spend taxpayer money to subsidize the building of an apartment complex which is not presently needed and does not really contribute to Bloomington's supply of affordable housing on one of the few remaining unspoiled tracts of forests and wetlands on Bloomington's west side, accomplishing nothing except lining the pockets of the developers and owner. This proposal amounts to corporate welfare, pure and simple.
It is also the opinion of the MCGP that the actions of the tree-sitter, Tracy McNeely, and her ground support team, are an effective use of nonviolent direct action which has played a key role in drawing attention to an important local issue. Because the findings of the Environmental Commission have so far not been properly addressed by the developer or the local government in their deliberations regarding the proposed development, direct action seems necessary in this case to achieve the public discourse needed to address this important issue.
For the stated reasons, the Monroe County Green Party strongly urges the county council to deny bond approval of this development.
source: http://free.freespeech.org/mcgreens/statements/stonysprings.txt 14jun01
Her daily routine probably isn't that much different than yours — except she does it all on a tiny wooden platform high atop an oak tree.
Tracy "Dolphin" McNeely has been living in a tree for the past 2 1/2 months to protest a proposed development in privately owned Brown's Woods.
And this far into her tree-sit, she's got her routine down pat.
First thing in the morning is breakfast. Then comes guitar practice.
"I'm learning to play the guitar, and that takes up a lot of my day," McNeely said. McNeely's mom, Donna, agreed, pointing out her daughter's fingers are quickly become callused from so much playing.
Next comes lunch and dinner, with maybe a little exercise in between.
McNeely has rigged up a rope and pulley system to two nearby trees, which she uses as both a workout and a way to access a little extra storage space.
But that's not the same as walking, she said, adding that she thinks her legs have atrophied a little during her protest.
And more often than not, there are visitors to talk with via cell phone or walkie-talkie.
Beneath her airy home, a black Labrador nuzzles guests, while a less friendly mutt growls fiercely.
Lawn chairs are sprinkled around the site, often used by visitors and supporters — including a visit from fellow protester Mary Demkovich, who spent April living in a tree in Yellowwood Forest to protest logging.
Is the heat getting to her? "It's hot, but not unbearable," McNeely said. "I just have to rely on Mother Nature."
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