Huge development in Grand Forks hailed by city leaders
January 2, 2013 at 2:58 pm in Grand Forks Herald
Plans for 360-acre property call for 1,350 homes, 120-acres of commercial development, park and school.
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Huge development in Grand Forks hailed by city leaders
52 Comments
Get rid of the pond so they can have room for a firing range for all those pistol packing teachers to practice at….New school…New rules…
Hot debate. What do you think?
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jibber-jabber … There already is a gun range not far from there.
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Ever heard of satire? Didn’t think so.
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Really realist? Have you read any of the comments tundrabeast and I have exchanged over the past several months? If so I would think by now you would see we often give each other crap. And….you could try to mellow out just a bit. You don’t have to be crabby all the time.
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Ya Realist….DC and I used to have a thing many years ago. I thought that red hair and temper meant she was just a hot headed Irish lass….Until the morning I came to in a pit with the stench of sulfur…..Then the nasty truth of her being the DC was revealed. I’d still be there too if her old man wasn’t interested in long hair hippy types at the time…..I got kicked out of hell and after all these years…She get on my case every chance she can…….Jus my cross to bear
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You wish … now please stay on topic.
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Actually it’s time to come clean…Your old man said that if I endured spending time with his daughter…Then there’s nothing worse he could do to me in hell….So he released me…….
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More housing for the rich. That will definately solve the housing problem.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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The rich? Or the ones who are/will be up to their necks in debt?
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Likely both. Although I rarely watch it, I saw an episode of “House Hunters” the other night, where a 25-year old couple set $650K as their limit…putting most of there savings up as a down payment.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Although this will fill a need for housing in our growing community, it won’t even come close to filling a need for AFFORDABLE housing. An expensive project such as this one is only going to result in very high prices in all areas from purchase or rent to utilities and property taxes. So glad to live in an older part of town which has much nicer character with the beauty and individuality of the homes at an affordable price. Did I mention how peaceful it is here in the north end (away from the university, of course)? Also, who wants to live in a home that looks exactly like someon else’s? Before, families had many different prospects based on their preferences. Now, it seesm that choices are being limited to only the interior layout being different while exteriors of homes look so bland and uniform. “My unit is the 3rd one in the 5th row on the 2nd street”. Even single-family units that are being built today look so much like others. I love the individuality of my family’s home.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Little boxes on the prairie,
Little boxes made of ticky tacky
Little boxes on the prairie,
Little boxes all the same,
There’s a pink one and a green one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they’re all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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I wonder how many here remember the original and who wrote it. It would be reflective of the demographics of this site.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Boxes
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Greatday,
Maybe Ms. Botwin will be relocating here?
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When my grandparents bought their house after the war, it was one of 4-5 designs. If you drive down Irving St in Brooklyn Center/Park you can see the houses all look the same. My mom said that it was comforting as a kid to know where everything was, no matter whose house you went to!
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How much of this is being funded by taxpayer who don’t live in the development?
Except for the school and perhaps other “public” areas, the answer I’m hoping for–but do not expect–is “zero”.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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If “city leaders” hail it, don’t be surprised if taxpayers end up having to ante up.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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You’re the one that sticks up for socialism for the rich, Schurkey. Why do you care?
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Give me an example of “socialism for the rich”.
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taxpayer funded wall street bail outs, lack of taxes on capital gains..
would you like more?
local tax investments to corporate america for them to move businesses to a town and once those tax breaks are done the business pulls up and moves away.. (Please see Sykes Enterprises for this on in North Dakota)
would you like more? I can go on if you want.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Thank you maverick. Add all the construction projects paid for by taxes but carried out by private companies. Even school food contracts are awarded to private companies paid for by taxes. Why is there so much pork? Because private companies lobby congress and state gov. to build continuously. These projects get built to enable them to win government contracts they get rich off of.
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“taxpayer funded wall street bail outs,”
I have, and continue to oppose Wall-street bailouts.
” lack of taxes on capital gains..”
I have never posted in support of our tax structure.
“local tax investments to corporate america for them to move businesses to a town and once those tax breaks are done the business pulls up and moves away”
I have never posted in support of Corporate Welfare. In fact, I’m on record as opposing it. I got caught up in New Flyer’s move to–and out of–Grand Forks. Nobody knows better than me about wasteful subsidies to business.
“would you like more? ”
I would like you or Spearman to post a single example of my support for “socialism for the rich”. I don’t think you can find any evidence. I’ve been wrongly accused.
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Schurkey, do you support awarding defense contracts to private companies?
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Are you suggesting the government should run its own defense industry? If that were the case, Aruba could take us over.
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I wouldn’t live in that part of GF for anything. The traffic on South Columbia Road, 32nd Ave South, and 42nd are already congested. Have you been to the garden center at Lowes? The noise from the interstate is deafening. I can’t even imagine paying top dollar for a home to listen to traffic noise. On top of all that there isn’t a stick in sight. There is nothing to block the wind, the dirt, or the snow. This is my idea of pure hell.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Residents will demand the building of walls along I-29, much like those along I-94 through Brooklyn Center…for which we’ll all foot the bill.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I agree and they will want federal dollars to pay for it just like Fargo, the Twin Cities, and ever other community that builds a residential area along a major interstate. Next an on/off ramp from the interstate for them even though the Merryfield one has been turned down several times.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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It’s reminiscent of people who move near an airport, and then want it moved. Or the downtown GF folks who complained about the train whistle, which was there before they were. Of course, once Brown moved downtown, the whistle was silenced. Must be nice to have political muscle.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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The one that made me shake my head was when the Point area of East Grand Forks was developed … right across the Red Lake River from the ACS factory. Right away the new homeowners complained about the smell of the wasterwater ponds. The old saying … “It smells like money” … didn’t work that time. In the long run the entire town of EGF benefitted. ACS was finally forced to address the odor.
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Just to set the record straight on the train whistles: We who live downtown within a block of the tracks tolerated the whistles for decades without much problem. About 3 years ago because of accidents in different locations, the trains increased the volume and duration of whistles and it then became absolutely unbearable. I actually asked people who live in the same building as the mayor if the whistles bothered them and they said they couldn’t hear them. So blame it on us, who are smack-dab next to the tracks, for the relative silence. This is not to whitewash the mayor-and-co. for anything else you may consider him responsible for. Just us trying to save our ears from bleeding every time a train went by!
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Did you not know the train went through there when you moved in?
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Gene, Not the case in MSP.
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It was years ago when people in Bloomington wanted MSP gone. I think they were looking some place 40 miles northwest of the Cities.
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Tract housing development makes use of few architectural designs, and labor costs are reduced because workers need to learn the skills and movements of constructing only those designs rather than repeat the learning curve. In addition, as all homes in the development will be built at the same time, the cost of purchasing and transporting building supplies may be reduced due to economies of scale. Components such as roof trusses, plumbing trees, and stair systems are often prefabricated in factories and installed on-site. This allows builders to offer lower prices, which in turn can make homes affordable to a larger percentage of the population.
SOURCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tract_housing
If it costs to little to build the type of housing that is found in subdivisions such as this one, then why are the prices so high? There is NOOOOOO excuse for selling a house at as high prices as are found in a community such as ours. Our home was valued at right around $40,000 when we bought it almost 20 years ago. Its value has increased by almost $40,000 but our taxes has remained fairly steady and not jumped significantly and our payment remains extremely low (under $450 per month). Why shouldn’t every homeowner have this experience? I’m having a positive homeowner experience with the low costs and a home that I love. I am very upset for others who are having to pay such a high price for a home that they might not love because of the limited options. Some might say that people choose to live in homes in which they have to pay high costs, but I have the opinion that they are kind of forced into it because of the limitations in style and price.
For those who are just beginning a hunt for a home, don’t let any realtor talk you into something that you know you will struggle to afford (they don’t take into consideration such living expenses as groceries, fuel for vehicles, property maintenance costs, auto insurance, etc. and will base what you can “afford” on your gross instead of net income). Also, don’t let anyone convince you that you will eventually fall in love with the home he/she thinks would be “perfect” for your family. If you don’t love it when you look at it, then chances are you will never love it and may regret buying that home knowing that the one you would have loved is out there somewhere.
Finally, don’t think that just because a home is lower prices that it is not as nice as the more expensive homes. Try looking in a quieter part of town where there are older homes. They have more character, most are less expensive, and they have so much more potential than the newer “uniform” homes. Keep in mind that you can always paint a room any color you want to and replace carpeting with any style and color you want to once you are in your home. Think about those things when you go to open houses.
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Traveling all over the country I really get to see the changes between the old way of setting up neighborhoods and today. I go by newer neighborhoods that remind me so old military base designs where everything is basically the same. Compare that to older well established neighborhoods where the houses often have a look of individuality. There’s still neighborhoods like that, but you’re talking a lot of money to have a house like that built today in most cases.
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This is nothing but a hastily thrown together paper pacifier to mollify those who have finally recognized that ‘Dinger and the other big timers are the reason that GF’s housing is too damn high.
I am not surprised that the council members are oohing and ahhing at this sham. It’s their fault that the big timers haven’t had any pressure to allow affordable development. I wouldn’t be surprised if they took drama lessons before this wondrous (yes, that is sarcasm) proposal.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Watch as this story progresses. The developer will appear before the city council and demand taxpayer money be put up to assure he has no financial risk. The ruler of the city, who spends citizens’ money with alacrity when he wouldn’t invest a dime of his own, will agree. And we will all be on the hook when houses don’t sell.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
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Look up boorish.
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When they mentioned the meeting a few days ago I joked about how in a couple decades we’ll be annexing Thompson……I’m thinking it might not be a joke. Regardless…..That sure is a lot of good farm land going into housing plots….If only they had put the mall around Gateway and I29 like they originally planned. That land around there would be much better to turn over to housing
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I was told that land had a fairly high alkali content so it’s not very good farm land compared to the land they keep using on the south end
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It also wouldn’t grow lawns and trees.
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I don’t really know about such things, but couldn’t they put down a foot of good top soil for that?
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A foot wouldn’t do it. The salt would leach up to the surface anyway.
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Oh well…Throw down some artificial turf…..Who wants to do all that mowing anyway? Even though my tractor mower is fun to run…I could do just fine with no mowing at all
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Gene said,”It’s reminiscent of people who move near an airport, and then want it moved. Or the downtown GF folks who complained about the train whistle, which was there before they were. Of course, once Brown moved downtown, the whistle was silenced. Must be nice to have political muscle”.
Blame the citizen and not the corporation like Northwest Air that wouldn’t allow MSP airport to move away from South MPLS. The surrounding south side was there before the airport.
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Maybe there, but in a lot of other places he’s right on the money. West of Chicago there’s a tool booth area that was out in the country all surrounded by fields. Eventually they developed it and suddenly there were signs warning that it was illegal to use engine brakes.
As for the airports there’s bee the same problem on some of the run ways for the Ohare. They developed homes right on the take off or landing path and then people complain
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As I said, back in the early 70s they were discussing a site some 40 miles out of the Cities. It died, not just due to NWA but the enormous inconvenience to travelers.
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GD, It was in the 80s and it wasn’t turned down because of distance but because it would have taken so much farmland that the county where it was to be located complained due to loss of tax base. That and the cost to Northwest Air to move was prohibitive.
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They were looking at Ham Lake. And the cost would have been prohibitive. Never mind the cab fare to downtown Mpls.
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Where did you get Ham Lake? That was just an early location while the one that was settled on was south of Farmington in the SE metro. It was the farmers that got in the way. You can’t blame them for wanting to keep their farms. Their ally of course was NW Air that didn’t want to spend the moving money.
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