I had to laugh when the affordable housing advocates from the Great White North of Arlington, aka VOICE, went to the County Board with their 10,000 petition signatures asking for affordable housing to be constructed on public land in the County. Any so-called 'affordable' housing that's built in Arlington will be funded by the County Board in conjunction with its deals with pet REITs, pet developers, pet housing non-profits, pet consultants, and pet fellow Democrats. Aided and abetted by a bloated bureaucracy (there are more than 50 County employees engaged in public relations across County Government) and local media that are de facto chamber of commerce lobbyists
There is no way Chairman Walter, aka Nada, Tejada could say Yes to VOICE last Saturday. Every spare dollar of revenue will be committed to the County Board's pet vanity projects, whether lighted synthetic surface soccer fields, live theater in every neighborhood, Columbia Pike Streetcar and, oh yes, the Jay Fisette Aquatics Center.
I saw this before, when the County Board committed to building affordable housing in Potomac Yards. Never happened.
If VOICE wants to accomplish its goals its members should not waste any more time on the County Board or the bloated County bureaucracy or the news media. They should volunteer to help elect John Vihstadt to County Board.
Pike Rider
