Comp plan is 'clever' way to add affordable housing

Who says Bonner County's planning commissioners don't know what they're doing? Their plan for creating lots of affordable housing is clever indeed.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, here's how the plan works. Step 1: Propose a new comprehensive land use map that is restrictive beyond reason. This creates incentive for everyone to subdivide right now before that map can be adopted — let alone the new zoning rules their almighty "consultant" will dream up.

Step 2: Since subdividing costs money, all of the new lots will be put on the market as fast as possible. Serious oversupply is the result and the price of land goes into free fall. Bingo: affordable housing.

It's a great plan and has worked before in California, Colorado and even here in little old Bonner County. A side benefit of the whole thing is that all of the fancy, schmancy second homes that the city folk are building as "investments" won't turn out to be such hot ideas, and those folks will be leaving a packet behind them when they bail out. Those of us that have been around awhile know that the city folks are paying Tahoe prices, and this isn't Tahoe. It usually takes them a couple of years to figure that out.

So, get on the bandwagon folks. Do your duty for the good of the county. If you've got a couple of acres, get it subdivided now! We need all of the affordable housing we can get. After all real wages for those of us that actually live here have fallen more than 25 percent since 1980 (from $30,000 to $21,556 in 2003, adjusted for inflation, according to the Bonner County Economic Development Council).

The city folks apparently never learned the concept of boom and bust, which is a way of life here. We know it well, so here's a primer for newcomers. The boom happens when you all keep betting that there is a bigger sucker in line behind you. The bust starts when you find out that you're the last in line.

DIANA GRAY

Cocolalla