To the Readers’ Forum:

I read with interest your front page article on March 6 tagged ‘Cleaning House’. One quick question: $11 million for 45 units? That’s over a quarter of a million dollars per unit; to be more exact, $244,444.44 per unit! Wouldn’t, couldn’t, or shouldn’t that money be better spent on constructing 45 single family units on the many city owned empty lots in the city?

I will be the first to admit I am not up to date with current construction costs but a quick search of some most recent building permits for a modest single home would, I believe, the quarter million dollar per unit would be excessive. If the unit rents are to be either fully or partially subsidized in addition to tenant contributions, that subsidy and contribution would be applied to the ‘mortgage’ on the single family home and some sort of city and school tax payments. Pride of home ownership should hopefully result in keeping the property in fine condition. Construction jobs and material purchases would be benefit our local economy.

And finally, single family units would aesthetically improve any neighborhood and not constructing multiple unit housing would reduce the sometime negative views of ‘public housing’.

Just my opinion!

Tim Fagerstrom,

Jamestown