[MA-RPC] FW: [at-l] 250 senior living homes

[James Hooper]

For the Mason-Dixon Trail, I found out that it is very useful to talk  
to the county planning commissions.  In York County, they have helped  
us.
On Feb 27, 2006, at 11:12 AM, Michele Miller wrote:

> Hal,
>
> Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this issue.  Your ideas were
> wonderfully put and I couldn't agree with you more in regard to  
> development
> pressures along the A.T.  Now if we could just multiply your  
> passion and
> enthusiasm a thousand fold, we might be in good shape to better  
> protect our
> 2,170-mile sliver from GA to ME.
>
> In a two to three week period when the Mid-Atlantic Region got word of
> several large development proposals (including a 765 kilovolt power  
> line
> with a 1000-ft. right-of-way, a 900-unit housing development on the  
> side of
> Cove Mountain, 15-20 200' tall wind turbines in the most primitive  
> area
> along the A.T. in PA and a 634-unit housing development directly  
> abutting
> the Trail at Center Point Knob and the White Rocks Trail [which,  
> adding
> insult to injury, will include a reserved right to construct a road  
> across
> NPS ATPO lands!], did it seem like sort of a positive thing that  
> yet another
> proposed development along the Trail was electing to clump all of  
> their
> required "open area" right up against the corridor?  You betcha!
>
> In all honesty, it feels like we are getting hammered by  
> development.  And,
> I hate to be the pessimist, but I can't imagine that the pressure  
> is going
> to slow down anytime soon.  I am not saying that we should just  
> give up and
> role over, but we do need a new strategy for better protecting the  
> Trail.
> Our current strategy, trying to fight proposals that are already on  
> the
> table, as we all know is ineffective.  We need to insert ourselves  
> (the
> A.T.) into the municipal planning process and stop running around  
> with a
> squirt gun trying to put out all the fires.  To do this, to get out  
> in front
> of all these proposals, we need active and increased participation  
> from club
> volunteers.  Particularly, volunteers who reside in the townships  
> through
> which the A.T. passes.  Folks who can get involved at the local  
> level.  I
> don't mean to slight those volunteers who are out there already  
> fighting the
> good fight, I'm just saying that we need more of you.
>
> To me, this is a perfect issue for the RPC to take on.  Throughout  
> PA many
> townships are starting to create environmental advisory committees  
> for the
> purpose of advising and educating townships on matters of  
> environmental
> importance to communities.  Wouldn't it be great if we could get  
> some of our
> A.T. volunteers involved with EACs along the Trail?
>
> Working proactively with municipalities is definitely high on ATC's  
> to-do
> list.  But we certainly won't be able to check this one off the  
> list without
> the good efforts of passionate volunteers like yourself.
>
> My two cents.
>
> Michele
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ma-rpc-bounces at commerce-02.cilia.org
> [mailto:ma-rpc-bounces at commerce-02.cilia.org] On Behalf Of Hal Wright
> Sent: Saturday, February 25, 2006 9:01 AM
> To: MARPC list
> Subject: Re: [MA-RPC] FW: [at-l] 250 senior living homes
>
> Start my 2 cents.
>
> In general, local municipalities understand the $600K rule, which is
> why you will often see great sprawling developments of 1/2 to 1 acre
> lots with McMansions on them (in lieu of more affordable single homes
> on smaller lots), coupled with some townhouses at the opposite
> extreme, where the density of housing cuts infrastructure costs
> (albeit not school costs). Municipalities love high-end senior-
> citizen townhouse developments: no kids going to school; high-
> density, high-value homes.
>
> What you don't see is small, affordable single homes on smaller lots,
> as these represent the worst financial situation for the
> municipality: lots of infrastructure, lots of roads, more school
> students, lower home value and hence lower tax revenue. Hence the
> rising cost of such homes that already exist, and the housing squeeze
> for low- to mid- income individuals and families.
>
>  From the AT point of view, we should be cautious about trumpeting
> the "it takes a $600K house to break even" rule of thumb, as we might
> end up getting what we wish for, and having huge McMansion-style
> developments on what used to be farm land littering our viewsheds.
>
> I hate this whole situation, and I know I'll get flamed again for
> saying it, but Michelle's response is what I was describing earlier
> when I discussed the reality that the AT in the mid-Atlantic is
> rapidly becoming a suburban trail. Here is an ATC employee saying, if
> I understand you correctly Michelle, that the outcome here isn't too
> bad because we'll have a buffer bigger than the minimum corridor
> width between us and the development. I salute the pragmatism
> inherent in that statement, but I also acknowledge the reality that
> it describes.
>
>   I didn't mean to say before, and don't mean to say now, that we
> will be looking into people's back yards over the whole length of the
> trail (although some sections have that appearance now, and more will
> in the future). Rather, I'm saying that we will be caretakers of a
> long, thin sliver of a park slicing through the suburbs, with our
> beloved AT at its center. Such a place will not have the wilderness
> feel some of us are accustomed to and quite fond of. Such a place
> demands different things of its caretakers than a wilderness park:
> active curtailment of noise pollution, more active treadway
> maintenance, better enforcement, more stringent rules on campsite and
> shelter use, and so on.
>
> If, like me, you live in an area where there are large wooded parks
> in a suburban setting, you know that the official response has been
> to pave pathways through those woods so that they may be patrolled by
> rangers in SUVs. Clearly this isn't the approach we are looking for.
>
> The DWG area, Jersey side, is patrolled by federal park rangers on
> ATVs. They go up the Douglas trail to Backpacker Site 2, and then on
> to Sunfish Pond along the AT itself. How do we feel about that?
>
> Our club has already been discussing the enforcement issue in monthly
> meetings, and many advocate a sign-up arrangement wherein two club
> members will be stationed at trouble spots throughout the warmer
> months. Others have expressed concern that these people will be
> putting themselves at risk. And, sad to say, trouble isn't confined
> to the warmer months. My sense is that, acting alone, the clubs will
> not be able to manage this problem for the long term. What's needed
> is a creative, overarching solution that gets willing and able
> enforcement where it's required, without asphalt and without (or with
> minimal use of) ATVs. A more robust , four-season ridgerunner program
> is but one piece of the overall solution.
>
> End my 2 cents.
>
>
>
> On Feb 24, 2006, at 5:50 PM, Walt Daniels wrote:
>
>>  I am sure there is a formula but I don't know what it is. I will
>> ask the
>> next time I see someone who might know. I think it is the fairly
>> obvious,
>> add up the costs of schools, polices, roads, etc. and compare with
>> the taxes
>> they pay.
>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Michele Miller [mailto:mmiller at atconf.org]
>>> Sent: Friday, February 24, 2006 10:03 AM
>>> To: 'Walt Daniels'; 'MARPC list'
>>> Subject: RE: [MA-RPC] FW: [at-l] 250 senior living homes
>>>
>>> Walt--How did your town determine that any home under $600K
>>> is a net loss?
>>> Did they have some specific formula that could be passed on
>>> to other townships?
>>>
>>> This particular development may turn out to be somewhat of a
>>> win-win situation.  The 14-acre open area directly adjacent
>>> to the A.T. will remain "open" in perpetuity effectively
>>> increasing our buffer from adjacent development.  If this
>>> goes through as proposed, it will be a much better situation
>>> than having homes right up against the corridor.
>>>
>>> Michele
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: ma-rpc-bounces at commerce-02.cilia.org
>>> [mailto:ma-rpc-bounces at commerce-02.cilia.org] On Behalf Of
>>> Walt Daniels
>>> Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2006 8:43 PM
>>> To: MARPC list
>>> Subject: [MA-RPC] FW: [at-l] 250 senior living homes
>>>
>>>  Another article about one of the current theats. The
>>> township just doesn't seem to understand the true cost of any
>>> development compared with the cost of open space. In my area,
>>> any house under $600K is a net loss to the town for services
>>> required.
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: at-l-bounces at backcountry.net
>>> [mailto:at-l-bounces at backcountry.net] On Behalf Of Steve Landis
>>> Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2006 8:29 PM
>>> To: AT-L
>>> Subject: [at-l] 250 senior living homes
>>>
>>> http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2006/02/21/news/news21.txt
>>>
>>> "The area abuts the Appalachian Trail, which runs through
>>> South Middleton.
>>> Faley says he's even heard talk of using that area in
>>> conjunction with the existing space for the 2,175-mile trail
>>> from Maine to Georgia." ???????
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> AT-L Mailing List.
>>>
>>> Go here to unsubscribe or change your options:
>>>
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/at-l
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> MA-RPC mailing list
>>> MA-RPC at commerce-02.cilia.org
>>> http://www.nynjtc.org/mailman/listinfo/ma-rpc
>>>
>>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> MA-RPC mailing list
>> MA-RPC at commerce-02.cilia.org
>> http://www.nynjtc.org/mailman/listinfo/ma-rpc
>
> _______________________________________________
> MA-RPC mailing list
> MA-RPC at commerce-02.cilia.org
> http://www.nynjtc.org/mailman/listinfo/ma-rpc
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> MA-RPC mailing list
> MA-RPC at commerce-02.cilia.org
> http://www.nynjtc.org/mailman/listinfo/ma-rpc