The July 2 edition carried a story on Planning and Urban Development Director Jeff Levine’s recommendation that a $5,000-per-room fee be applied to new hotels being built in Portland. This resulted from a study conducted by the Greater Portland Council of Governments. These fees, paid by developers, would be placed into a fund used to encourage affordable housing in the form of subsidies for the housing projects.

The profitability of hotels, and the fact that about 400 hotel rooms are expected to be added by 2020, were factors mentioned.

The room fee could be avoided if the developer provided one low-income housing unit for every 20 hotel rooms, either on site or at another location.

This is a blatantly liberal social engineering scheme that puts a severe burden on a very small group of taxpaying citizens and investors simply because the potential profitability of their investment currently looks favorable.

Wait until a recession comes and the tourist traffic dries up. Some of these hotels could become ghost buildings. (Then there would be a lot of low-income housing available.)

If business remains good, better wages, improved public transportation and voluntary housing of staff in the hotel are possible answers to provide employees, and to decrease low-income housing needs.

Thomas F. Shields

Auburn


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