Warren Buffett Joins Urban Redevelopment

OK, any of you ATL guys want to chime in on how effetive this is and/or the BS content of the article?

Buffett was in Indianapolis this week to lend his support to a new holistic approach to urban redevelopment. It's an idea he's betting will help break the cycle of poverty that for decades has gripped struggling inner-city neighborhoods across the USA .
Buffett isn't the only tycoon getting behind the concept from Purpose Built Communities, an Atlanta-based non-profit. Joining him this week in Indianapolis were two others: Tom Cousins, a prominent real estate developer who pioneered the concept in Atlanta in the late 1990s, and retired hedge fund manager Julian Robertson.

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Buffett said he learned about the concept while serving on the board of Coca-Cola. When he visited the company headquarters in Atlanta, he kept hearing stories about a unique project that was changing lives in a deteriorating part of the city called East Lake. Crime was down. Employment rates and incomes were up. Kids were staying in school and going to college.

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More at:

http://www.wltx.com/news/national/article/...-Redevelopment-

Capt Worley PE said:

OK, any of you ATL guys want to chime in on how effetive this is and/or the BS content of the article?

Buffett was in Indianapolis this week to lend his support to a new holistic approach to urban redevelopment. It's an idea he's betting will help break the cycle of poverty that for decades has gripped struggling inner-city neighborhoods across the USA .
Buffett isn't the only tycoon getting behind the concept from Purpose Built Communities, an Atlanta-based non-profit. Joining him this week in Indianapolis were two others: Tom Cousins, a prominent real estate developer who pioneered the concept in Atlanta in the late 1990s, and retired hedge fund manager Julian Robertson.

Click to expand...

Buffett said he learned about the concept while serving on the board of Coca-Cola. When he visited the company headquarters in Atlanta, he kept hearing stories about a unique project that was changing lives in a deteriorating part of the city called East Lake. Crime was down. Employment rates and incomes were up. Kids were staying in school and going to college.

Click to expand...

More at:

http://www.wltx.com/news/national/article/...-Redevelopment-

Click to expand...

East Lake is definitely a lot better than it used to be, but it still has a ways to go to be somewhere I'd be willing to live. The golf club there is great, though--it was Bobby Jones' home club.

yes East Lake still has a long way to go, these folks are trying to "fix stupid" which you just cant do

I was just wondering because they've tried the 'mixed income development' thing here, and it has bee a massive failure. The section 8 rental units filled right up, but the single family dwellings are 50% sold, after being on the market for 5 years. Can you imagine buying a home that's been sitting vacant for five years...I would imagine all those energy efficient appliances aren't in the best shape anymore. Why would anyone in their right minds drop a quarter mill on a house right next door to section 8 housing?

It was supposed to have retail, but their other mixed income/use retail strip mall couldn't attract any tennants and stands empty, so they saw the writing on the wall and put that off.

Oh, and this was all paid for by a federal grant, so everyone's been paid except the US taxpayer. Ten million dollars down the hole.

They have an area in Cary, NC that has some section 8 housing nearby....it's the high crime area in Cary, and starting to struggle. I've seen this over and over in my life. It's not about having something nice, or a nice place to live, it's all about EDUCATION and work ethic. If you can't find a way to make young kids intelligent, everything else is a waste of money.

NCcarguy said:

It's not about having something nice, or a nice place to live, it's all about EDUCATION and work ethic. If you can't find a way to make young kids intelligent, everything else is a waste of money.

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True, but apparently the politicians either don't understand that or don't care.

i thought it was about gods and clogs?

Capt Worley PE said:

It was supposed to have retail, but their other mixed income/use retail strip mall couldn't attract any tennants and stands empty, so they saw the writing on the wall and put that off.

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Links to the dead grocry store:

http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=114054&quot

http://columbiaclosings.com/wordpress/?p=3067

Comments sections are pretty funny.