Democracy In Albany

I think that commercial development is probably a better deal for Albany then housing for the following reasons:

1. The units would probably be upscale and high end and there is a lot of competition that will be entering that market in the next few years from the tax payer supported projects already proposed for downtown.

2. These projects tend to be supported at tax payer expense. 10 and 20 year property tax abatements usually will cover the entire cost of the projects.  Not only would all of us be paying for the construction but these projectes would devalue the older garden style apartment complexes in the area and lowerer their assessed value- and their tax revenue.  Again, using the "deals" that have been made with other developers as a guide, by the time that these apartment complexes are paying their fair share of property taxes they will already be devalued due to age.

3. Even single family houses uptown would not be economically viable without tax payer support.  

4. More residential will knock the stuffing out of attempts to renovate and improve the downtown sections of Albany.

5. We need more private sector jobs in Albany. The city cannot sustain itself on the government tit.  Already a disproportionate amount of Albany property is either state, church, or not for profit owned.