Posted: Saturday, September 22, 2012 12:00 am
It is oftentimes said jokingly that an expert is someone from at least 50 miles away with a briefcase. But it’s no joke that Liberty needs help in determining which direction to go to see its residential numbers increase and why this city is not seeing the kind of housing starts that surrounding cities are experiencing.
Kansas City issued 128 permits in the Liberty school district through June. Kearney issued 31 permits through August, and Liberty issued 20 permits for the same time period.
Because of such numbers, some city councilmen think the city should consider hiring a consultant to help compile and analyze information on the state of residential construction in Liberty. We think that might be a good idea to explore, and it might also be a good idea to consider bringing in a consultant from outside the Kansas City metropolitan area. The downside would be that an out-of-town consultant might not have as much knowledge about the local market. The upside could be that an outsider could bring a fresh new perspective and might not have preconceived notions or political trepidations.
While many people realize that Liberty has plenty of land on which to develop, it simply does not have building lots with infrastructure ready to go, and this has been the case for a number of years, even before the housing bubble burst. Even in good times, Liberty had few developers and those that were here held large tracts of land. When hard times came, building activity came to a screeching halt, leaving only infill lots scattered in older subdivisions throughout town.
To stimulate housing construction, Liberty has been offering an 80 percent discount for construction permits for houses to be built on existing infill lots. We have no problem with giving home builders an extra incentive to fill those lots in existing subdivisions or near the Liberty Square. According to city officials, there are about 106 infill lots, but not all are desirable to build a house on.
But what happens when these infill lots are all taken? What steps does the city need to take to turn around this situation? Maybe a mayoral-appointed task force on housing could work with a consultant to come up with some innovative ideas. The school district also needs to participate in any discussions. This type of teamwork has worked with other task forces and consultants. Right now, for example, a community center task force is working with a consultant. A downtown task force is working with another consultant.
Let’s face it, the city’s major competitor for residential and commercial development lies just across Interstate 35 to the west in Kansas City. And the reason Kansas City is going gangbusters is because of the widespread use of tax-increment financing in the Shoal Creek Valley, dating back nearly 20 years. TIF has built beautiful boulevards and allowed water and sewer lines, and landscaping to be installed — all with tax money.
With such cash cows as Walmart and Target contributing half their sales taxes generated to pay for even more infrastructure, Liberty will continue limping along unless it takes some bold steps and comes up with a winning game plan.
Liberty does have a lot going for it — excellent quality of life, top-notch school system, hospital, college, highway system, major road improvements under way, new jobs on the way and a city government willing to take action to make things better. Go for it.
© 2012 LibertyTribune.com . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Posted in
Editorials
on
Saturday, September 22, 2012 12:00 am.
Speak Your Mind