Years ago, at Asheville’s Citizens’ Academy, we role played a conditional use hearing for a new WalMart. Assignments were given out more or less randomly, and I got to be the developer. The person playing the city staff presenter lambasted and defamed our project so wrongfully, I had to take a defensive position. After setting the record straight, I pled with city council. I said we were willing to bend over backward. Planning and Development Director Scott Shuford laughed so hard he almost fell on the floor when I said, “We already gave you the affordable housing requirement!”

Welcome to 2008. The Affordable Housing Task Force, which should be defunct but gave itself new life in the incarnation of the Affordable Housing Working Group (nice communist name) notes that developers “voluntarily” give the city affordable housing. What they don’t like is that some would prefer to pay a fee-in-lieu.

The Working Group’s desire was to see each project provide the affordable units within the project itself so as to promote the goal of mixed-income developments throughout the city, including developments proposed for downtown, and all projects requesting Conditional Use Permit and Conditional Zoning designations.

Meanwhile, Houston – unzoned Houston – made headlines for being almost recession-proof. Hello?