I would like to once again draw attention to the city’s North side. It appears to be almost like another city, one that’s detached from the rest of the community. It isn’t a place were it could draw business, it seems very unsafe and I am sure it is.
Many of you will remember the Flame & Ember’s club operated by John Zanios. It was a popular supper club that operated for many years on the same block as the now infamous Alley Katz bar now sits. It was well upholstered, the food was good and it was very safe. In fact there were several business located in that region that did a brisk business. Of course the Decker packing plant was in ful operation, 600 hogs an hour were slaughtered there….took a lot of people to process that. The two cement plants were also in full operation…more people, many living in immediate area of their work.
Then the plants ultimately closed and the area fell into decay and never recovered. When property becomes run down, it loses it’s attraction, it’s luster….the rent becomes much cheaper and that draws an element who are not heavily laden with funds and therefore not at all concerned with mowed lawns and flower boxes. These people are often dealers in various forms of popular pharmacology products and do not need expensive store front locations….plus they have a high disdain for authority. They are also almost impossible to completely eradicate, once one becomes a guest of the state, another quickly fills the vacancy.
What then is the solution? In my opinion the quickest way to revitalize a blighted area is to put in a new development; I am not talking about a couple store fronts… no one is going to invest money in that area in hopes of selling something, not now. You need a large development, one that could encompass a vast amount of land, something that could change the landscape and become a preeminent presence in the area. This sort of investment in blighted areas has been know to attract more businesses that will feed off the primary development and spread.
This in turn will act as a retardant to undesirables because they are not comfortable in the presence of more authority which will occur to patrol the new development. Also revoke the liquor license at Alley Katz bar and do not issue and new licenses in that section of the city. We have a brand new city planner…lets see what he can do.
Peter Children
Sounds a whole lot like the discredited urban renewal projects of the 60s.
On the other hand, if you are talking about trying to get new industrial or manufacturing businesses located in that area to recreate what used to be there with Decker and the cement plants, more power to you, though I think those days are over for good, and not just in Mason City.
“When you determine that you do not want to rent to them, simply set your priced higher than they can afford and ask for a high rent deposit. It will be them turning down the house, not you turning down the renter. No discrimination can be proven there.”
This alludes to unequal terms in housing. Such an action is hard to defend, and can point to Cream skimming, Social steering, and other such illegal acts. The exact wording of that statement alone is patently illegal on that basis. If evidence is found, the property owner or agent is going to need a lawyer.
Anyone who has faced this kind of behavior should contact the Mason City Human Rights Commission or a lawyer who specialized in housing.
.. And then there are SLUMLORDS who dont want to fix anything in/on their property or promise they will but never do and are only interested in getting their $$. Don’t spew this crap and complain about who you can or cannot rent to when some land lords have no intention of fixing things and only want their money then blame previous damage on the renters. That’s why when I have rented places I will take photos of before I move in and after.
bookmeyer said before he got elected was he was going to bring jobs. I know they all say that but has he brought any jobs to here and actually take credit for? just asking. good day