Thatguyyoupassby t1_j6oftqt wrote
Reply to comment by OutlawCozyJails in High Density Housing Development Near South Shore Plaza Receives Pushback by amos106
As someone who moved to the south shore recently, this is a great thing, and we need more of it.
People keep freaking out and rallying against it, yet they all love shopping at Hanover Crossing and going to that Market Basket. Development of apartments means more stores, more restaurants, more choice, and lower taxes.
Not to mention, these are all fairly high prices - you're bringing working, white-collar couples and young families to the area. All of this is a good thing.
amos106 OP t1_j6oq2sz wrote
At some point we have to accept we are not Europe and we can't just instantly undo 70 years of developing car-centric cities and suburbs. We don't have mixed used block housing and sprawling plazas and parks, we have dying malls and over conjested roadways from everyone being forced to drive 20 minutes just to go shopping or visit a restaurant. If we can revive the malls by building dense housing nearby, we can start to look at expanding public transit since there will be a thriving mall worth visiting as well housing that is condusive to car-free lifestyles. Plus if it attracts white-collar workers and young families that means those people aren't being forced to outbid lower income people and gentrify the existing housing market. The only people who benefit from not building housing are the NIMBYs who want to see their property value go up for no reason other than the fact that they like getting money for doing absolutely nothing (except complain about "neighborhood character" and increased property taxes).
Thatguyyoupassby t1_j6orblg wrote
That's really the big thing for me.
I didn't really want to leave Boston when my wife and I moved. But I hated paying $2,300 for a 1 bed, 4th floor walkup.
So we moved to Quincy Center, and eventually Wallaston, where it was kind of the best of both world for a while. Quieter than Boston, cheaper than Boston, but with bars, restaurants, and T access to Boston.
A few months back we finally bought a single family home further down the south shore. Car needed to get anywhere. And when you get there, you need it to go to the next place. It's rare that 2 things we need are close by.
So I welcome these mixed use places.
More young people, which helps drown out the older and more conservative crowd? Love it.
More housing close by, which is also good to have in case we ever fall on tough times and need to downsize? Great.
More things to do on weekends, places to eat, room for local stores? Perfect.
If we can just add more commuter rail stops/more frequent trains, id would really be perfect. But even without that, these projects are a great thing.
Unfortunately, NIMBYs are scared of EVERYTHING.
My town just got a community electric program. We will be paying .06 less per KWH than with Eversource alone (.16 vs .22). The local facebook group is littered with:
"I don't trust this program"
"I'm opting out - why are they forcing this on us?"
"This seems fishy to me."
Meanwhile, the pamphlet we got has all of the answers to their questions right there, and you can opt out at any time.
People are so afraid of change, it kills me.
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