Frankenstein's Monster

 

 

"This organization is worse than Frankenstein's Monster. In the movie there was only one monster. The Met Council has 18 of them!"

To many it is like a juggernaut. To others it is like an octopus with its tentacles in just about everything. What is it? The Metropolitan Council. The unelected, loosely regulated, very powerful group who wants to reshaped the Twin Cities and all who live around it.

The Met Council is taking on a couple of vexing problems which persists not only in the Twin Cities, but also throughout the country. Homelessness and the lack of affordable housing. So as part of their Utopian vision for our area, they are mandating that cities such as Carver, build apartment buildings which can accommodate those with lower incomes. The 68 unit complex, which is yet to be built, was discussed at a Carver style town hall meeting. The good people of Carver expressed their extreme displeasure to the Mayor and the City Council. In the end however, the Met Council will probably get their way and the complex will be built.

So what is the big hairy deal anyhow? First off, we do have suburbs (first ring) which decided many years ago to host a multitude of apartment complexes. The decision to do so has changed the reputation and direction of those cities. Period. Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park for example. Most growing cites outside the first ring suburbs DO NOT their city to turn out like one of the two Brooklyn's. The Met Council on the other hand, is telling cities in the seven county area to buck up - change in coming. The nanny state minded Met Council is going to single handedly assure that poverty in the Twin Cities does not become "clustered". So they are going to spread the pain.

Here is the problem that the Met Council fails to realize. In the two Brooklyn's, services have developed around the housing to accommodate the residents. There is plenty of public transportation. Plenty of stores which accept EBT and SNAP. Developing cities such as Carver are not set up the same way. Neither is the city that I live in. If you need public transportation in my city, good luck on that one.

There is one more very large issue at play. Liberty minded people live where they want to live for a variety of reasons. Many people who live in the exurbs do so because they want to be as far from big city problems as possible. They made the trade off to have longer drives in exchange for more peace and quiet and less crime. Some exurbs almost have the aura of "Andy of Mayberry". I know mine does.

When we moved out here 31 years ago, we came from a neighborhood which had started to rent townhouses to some Section 8 tenants. Problems soon followed. More police calls. More noise. More loitering. In the 8 years we lived in our first house, we could see the change. And it was not change for the better. I do not want to see the same type of change in the city I currently live in.

The duel problems of homelessness and affordable housing must be addressed. Most people, regardless of where they live, have compassion and want a solution to these two vexing problems. However, the solution must be one which works for everyone - not just the 18 unelected dictatorial Euphorians who sit on the Met Council.