Thursday, March 13, 2008
Home plan crumbles amid public ignorance
Shanna Flowers
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Batten down the hatches, folks. We may have witnessed a bit of immigration hysteria in Bedford County.
Monday, the county board of supervisors rejected a proposal by Forest builder David St. John after he acknowledged the town houses he wanted to build would be for seasonal workers he hires from -- gasp! -- Mexico.
St. John, a soft-spoken man, didn't want to wade into the fiery immigration debate that has engulfed this country when we spoke Wednesday afternoon.
"I don't know what was in the thoughts of the board," he said politely. "That's a good question for the board members."
But come on, what else can it be?
Supervisor Dale Wheeler lamely offered that St. John's request was "the wrong use of the property."
Never mind that the county's planning department had signed off, saying the proposal to build multifamily units met the necessary criteria for approval.
Never mind that planning commissioners had approved it unanimously in January.
Never mind that these are legal, temporary workers, not the fearsome illegal immigrants who zealots howl so much about.
All that went out the window when the public showed up at a meeting Monday night, panned the idea and groused about shirtless men and potential lower property values. The board caved and shot down St. John's request 5-2.
About the neighboring property owners at the meeting, St. John said, "I think there was concern about who was going to live there."
St. John sought a special-use permit to build seven town houses. Five of the units would be home to 20 seasonal workers that his company, May Bros., hires from March through December. He intended to charge the workers rent, and lease the other two town houses at market rates.
For five years, May Bros. has hired the workers through a federally mandated program -- which means the men are here legally.
May Bros. is a site preparation firm, grading land and getting it ready for the builders. During the construction season, St. John said he has about 50 employees on the payroll, including the seasonal workers.
As part of the federal mandate, May Bros. is responsible for finding housing for the workers, but they pay their own rent and utilities. St. John said the pay range is $8 an hour for a first-year worker to about $12 an hour.
Most of the seasonal workers are returning employees.
This year, St. John said he decided to start the process to build the town houses on 10 acres at May Bros.' headquarters so all the workers could live together. Current zoning allows single-family housing there, and eight of the Mexican workers have lived in a large house on the property for the past two years.
Some of the men are related, St. John noted. Having them staying in the same location saves time -- and gas -- each morning and evening from having to pick them up and drop them off at different spots.
His plan was to build town houses with two bedrooms and two baths, valued at about $115,000. That's not shabby. The units would have been very similar to other nearby town houses, he said.
How often have we heard or read about foreign workers crammed into living conditions because their wages are so low they can't afford better?
From all evidence, St. John was trying to avoid that scenario by building homes more amenable to his employees.
St. John should be commended for trying to create nice housing that would not only benefit his company and his employees but also help maintain the property values of his neighbors.
The board of supervisors' decision was short-sighted. St. John's actions should be encouraged -- not rejected because of the public's ignorance.
