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Government ghettos - why?

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  1. #11

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    "a barrier free pedestrian system" - you mean like the one slated for Wan Chai by the Hopewell Group where all the sidewalks are above ground and people have to go up and down stairs just to cross the street, while cars dominate the ground level.


  2. #12

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    Rightly or wrongly the HK gov't chose to provide subsidized housing likely as many of these same people were not ever going to be able to afford to rent in the open market as their job prospects were so low.

    Contrary to HKFOOTinMouth the USA has not accomplished what he says they have. The number of cities that require low income housing is so miniscule it is likely not a stat kept.

    There are states facing repeal campaigns of laws on affordable housing such as in Mass. where the folks concluded that this policy that FootinMouth is advocating is an "Abysmal failure" as it was used by rich developers to get concessions that they profited from.

    The people protesting this are the ones needing affordable housing:

    http://www.affordablehousingnow.org/

    "Chapter 40B had 40 years to create affordable housing in Massachusetts, and instead it has actually made Massachusetts a more expensive place to live. "

    And on and on.




    Quote Originally Posted by HongKongFoot:
    I think this is long overdue and they should be building more and more of these all over HK and KL. I think every district should have one like this, LKF, Midlevels, KT, Pok FL, etc. This way the rich locals can be brought back down to earth and stop taking advantage of the poor/disenfranchised.

    At least in the land of the free, when a development goes up, the developer is required to allocate a certain % of units to lower income families. This prevents gentrification of districts and areas.

    HK should of enacted the same legistation/laws a long time ago to protect the poor.
    Not sure what planet you are living on but in the "land of the free" gentrification has taken place all over the USA like Manhattan and the problem people just pushed elsewhere. Where it hasn't occurred in many cities the middle class fled to the suburbs to avoid crime and get better schools. Detroit is practically giving away housing to its police if they will agree to move their families back to the city and start an overall improvement process.

    You can see public housing on the way to Stanley, Wah Fu (near Pok Fu Lam) and in some of the choicest spots for views in HK bettered only by some of the HK prisons! In North America only the rich would inhabit the high ground.

    The US has a huge housing problem for the poor and not many of the so-called mixed developments have actually worked for rich or poor.

    You need to put down your weapons and learn more about the USA:

    Affordable Housing Statistics -- Habitat for Humanity Int'l

    AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS GETTING HARDER TO FIND

    For every 100 very low-income renters, only 76 affordable rental units are currently available. Between 1997 and 2001, the number of available units declined 13 percent; there were 1.8 million fewer units that very low-income renters could afford.

    To afford the fair-market price of the average U.S. two-bedroom rental unit, renters working full-time need to earn at least $15.28 per hour. That's almost three times the current federal minimum wage, and 37 percent more than renters needed to earn in 1999.
    Last edited by Football16; 31-08-2011 at 05:41 PM.
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  3. #13

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    HKF do you mean there are low income families in Beverely Hills???

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  4. #14

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    HKF, so when they build gated communities they have to have some areas for low income families?

    Gated community - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


  5. #15

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    Poor, disadvantaged, isolated, exploited people living in Government housing?
    Has any of the posters every walked through a government housing block car park?

    I think not ( in regard of both sentences ).

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  6. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    Poor, disadvantaged, isolated, exploited people living in Government housing?
    Has any of the posters every walked through a government housing block car park?

    I think not ( in regard of both sentences ).
    Many times, FIL lives in public housing and necessarily so. But it is surprising the amount of BMW and Mercedes parked in these car parks. Obviously well paid offspring still living with parents.
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  7. #17

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    Oh please, Habitat for Humanity is all bullshit, I have seen and known of more than a few applicants who applied for housing. They work under the table for cash, collect food stamps, then claim poverty in order to feed off the government's tit and elicit sympathy from these NGO's.

    Some of these people are skilled but do not want to earn over the set amount in order to qualify for cheaper housing.

    Those stats are all wrong if you consider the federal minimum wage is 7.25 * 40 * 52, the minimum annual salary is roughly 15K USD. Some states have a higher minimum wage law than the feds, CA is $9something if I remember correctly.

    Most cities and counties in California have initiatives on the books that call for a % of new housing developments to be sold to low income households.

    City of Pleasanton - Affordable Housing

    Affordable Housing Projects - City of Oakland

    Housing Authority of the County of Contra Costa

    I live here, I see and read most things that happen here. You dont know jack shit about the USA to make any kind logical conclusion about States, all you know is what you can gather online.

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  8. #18

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    Some areas have been priced out of the range even for normal income earners, you cannot expect the Gvt to go in and place new infrastructure where the mansions are.

    The same applies to cities like Piedmont CA, Hillsborough CA, etc, etc.


    Quote Originally Posted by gunsnroses:
    HKF do you mean there are low income families in Beverely Hills???

  9. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    Poor, disadvantaged, isolated, exploited people living in Government housing?
    Has any of the posters every walked through a government housing block car park?

    I think not ( in regard of both sentences ).
    If the Government will subsidies the housing of 40-50% of HK's workforce on behalf of their employers then obviously some (a lot) will slip through that don't really need housing of last resort.

    shouldn't government housing rents go up now there is a minimum wage?
    Last edited by East_coast; 31-08-2011 at 07:07 PM.

  10. #20

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    Quote Originally Posted by East_coast:
    But putting all those people in one compact zone away from everyone else may not be the best way to solve long term poverty.
    You might want to check out the site first. I lived about 250m away from this site and, in any other town on this planet, it would qualify for 'in the middle of the town'.

    Your point might still be valid in regard to the public housing in TSW or Tung Chung, though.

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