With regard to this week's meeting on Affordable Housing:

First. Speakers last night were convinced, and tried to convince us, that there are many Montclair homeowners who oppose affordable housing. We are told that these homeowners buy into the stereotype that people who live in affordable housing are "different." In a bad way. They don't have good jobs because they don't try hard enough. They are less law abiding, and less responsible. And that the affordable houses that they would live in would be poorly designed and would eventually become broken down and uncared for.

I have yet to meet these Neanderthals. Where are they?

One speaker said that she knows that they exist because she read one rabid, anonymous, post on a local blog. This is absurd. The post on the blog was shameful. It's likely that this post was made to deliberately provoke.

The people I talk to share the objective of the speakers: affordable housing. I know I do. But at the same time we share in our own "affordable housing crisis" having seen the values of our homes plummet, and our income, if not our jobs, disappear.

Second. The conversation was not about affordable housing. It was about affordable housing in the First Ward. More to the point, it was about building on Wildwood Avenue.

And while a builder such as HomeCorp could construct on the two lots the simple fact is that doing so will mean the town will have to pay for the goal of building in the First Ward. On Wildwood.

Here's the numbers as I see them.

Each lot was appraised at $350,000. That number is probably "optimistic" and a more realistic number is $250,000 in THIS market.

Affordable homes are not sold to qualified affordable buyers for $400,000. They are sold so that the spending of the person doesn't exceed 30% of their income. Depending on whether the homes are targeted for "low" or "moderate" income, this might mean the homes need to sell for a very low number. Certainly below $200,000.

Given construction costs, and the subsidies that an affordable housing developer would have to obtain, in order for "the numbers to work" the town would have to either give the property away, or sell the property for probably no more than $80,000.

Taking the market price of $250,000, net is the town loses $340,000 for the two lots if they sell at $80,000. If they give the properties away, the town loses $500,000.

So, bottom line is this: "Is the town willing to pay $500,000 to promote affordable housing in the first ward?"

This is not a matter of spending the money on affordable housing. It's a matter of spending the money to build affordable housing on Wildwood, in the first ward.

Third. [Fourth Ward Councilor] Dr. Renee Baskerville is to be commended for bringing together the panel Tuesday night. I especially appreciated the three individuals who actually are building and financing real affordable housing projects, rather than just talking about them. Those individuals were Beverly Riddick, of HomeCorp, Ed Martoglio of RPM, and Dan McGuire of Homeless Solutions.

I have spoken with both Beverley, and Ed. Their knowledge is extensive.

But I am puzzled.

Tuesday night we spoke of the need for our Community's support of affordable housing. Yet HomeCorp, which is the only private organization to develop any affordable housing in Montclair (other than housing contained in a redevelopment plan), had their administrative contract terminated by the Montclair Town Council a year ago. And just this past month the Council again failed to award HomeCorp the administrative contract.

This doesn't prevent HomeCorp from buying houses for affordable purposes, but it sure hurts them financially.

Why are we doing this to HomeCorp? "Some" said it was because another firm would do it for less. How does this snub to HomeCorp fit into our commitment, especially as the funds to support this administrative work needn't come solely from the Town, but could come from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

Fourth. Since it was repeatedly said that we need hundreds more affordable housing units, why are we focusing on TWO houses on Wildwood Avenue? And since we were told it was people like Ed Martoglio who are capable of building larger scale projects, using sources of financing such as Low Income Tax Credits, why aren't we working closer with Ed, and Dan, for their advice on how to meet the goal, how to do something other than the symbolic TWO houses?

Fifth. The lack of affordable housing was blamed for EVERYTHING last night! It is the reason for our population decline. It is the reason for fewer African Americans moving to Montclair. It is the reason seniors leave. It is the reason recent college graduates can't live here. It is the reason policemen, fire fighters, and teachers can't live here.

I have a better idea. It's not only affordable homes. It's taxes.

And the recent reassessment, which will raise taxes for approximately 4,500 residents, won't help.

And finally, in this quest to build affordable housing specifically in the first ward, on Wildwood, are we overlooking opportunities elsewhere in the first ward? And what's wrong with developing in the second ward? For the past three months, for example, HomeCorp has sought to just visit another town owned property, the former Hollow Day Care. The town has refused to even show them the property. Why?