LET THE HOMELESS...

...buy public housing units, Pitfield says
Very interesting article online...
Last Updated: Friday, September 15, 2006
5:37 PM ET
CBC NEWS
Mayoral candidate Jane Pitfield put forth a
plan Friday to give people living in public
housing units the opportunity to buy them,
an idea that rankled some homeless advocates.
"This may sound too good to be true, but it
isn't," Pitfield said.
Her plan would see the city building up to
5,000 housing units a year, none of which
would be rental.
All units would be sold, some on the open
market but one-quarter to people currently
living in public housing.
She said the prospect of home ownership
would serve as an incentive for people to
improve the state of their lives.
Housing and homeless advocates attending the
news conference were critical of Pitfield's plan.
Beric German, an anti-poverty advocate, called
the idea of offering an incentive "offensive,"
saying people are not poor by choice and are
not just looking for an incentive to improve
their lives.
Pitfield provided no cost estimate for the
program and gave few details. She said the
mortgages would be provided through
partnerships with the private sector, but
wouldn't elaborate.
The program would stop what she says is a
"habit" many people have of living in public
housing.
"When people own their own homes in secure,
mixed-income communities that offer
employment, and training and recreation,
there are much lower levels of crime and
vandalism," said Pitfield.
She says the move would give people a chance
to build wealth to sustain them into their
senior years, and eventually stop a
"multi-generational dependency on public
assistance."
German called the plan a piece of "total fantasy"
since most people in public housing can't even
afford a mortgage.

Yes excellent plan...
Why should the poor
not ever be able to own homes after
killing themselves to work for
Billionaires who continue to cut jobs
and pay minimum wages??????

BUT like the government will ever
allow this!
What! poor people get
a break?
NEVER