The Citizen-Times provided extended coverage of the Buncombe County zoning hearing. I disagree with the concept that fair reporting means if about thirty people speak in opposition and four speak in favor, then the pros and cons get equal coverage. I was also amused at how, after the commissioners heard pleas from constituents to refrain from enacting the ordinance that would price poor people out of housing, the commissioners unanimously approved partnering with Mountain Housing opportunities to increase the workforce housing stock. The county is going to sell land to MHO, and MHO will build sixty apartments with a $500,000 loan from the county and federal tax credits.
The county, building a good portfolio, is also able to lend to the federal government by buying its bonds. It accepted $9,749,000 in Recovery Zone Economic Development Bonds to build two schools and acquire an office building. The county’s finance director, Donna Clark, preferred to have the new bank building and school sites declared economically-distressed Recovery Zones than to take out general obligation bonds, because the federal government would forgive 45% of the interest on its bonds.
In addition, the county had Ingles’ Markets and AVL Technology, Inc. declared economically-distressed Recovery Zones, evidently. The county will be loaning the former $8,724,000 and the latter $5,900,000 with the proceeds from tax-exempt Recovery Zone Facility Bonds. I’m not sure, but I think if local governments loan money to the federal government by accepting its bonds, the federal government gets to say it gave away the money as part of the ARRA program.
