https://www.expressnews.com/opinion/commentary/article/Commentary-Reform-property-taxes-then-17171964.php?fbclid=IwAR2f2PbcsVkNfUh-H_rPuDUDujBakqb_jAjfBtR6rXg3zRaTy_9yGC4nNo0

Commentary: Reform property taxes — then eliminate them

Anne Englert, For the Express-News

May 15, 2022

We tell their stories, because the circumstances are real.

The middle-aged woman who inherited her grandmother’s home, the young couple wanting to start a family but wondering how long they can pay the property taxes before they are forced to move; the family that takes out a loan to meet their property tax; the long-term residents in a rapidly changing neighborhood who face displacement; the resident on a fixed-income forgoing repairs and sometimes necessities to pay even moderately rising property taxes.

We know these people. They are our neighbors. They are us.

High property taxes displace families, severing support and destabilizing neighborhoods.

We are tired of Band-Aid solutions. We’re tired of attending workshops on how to protest our property taxes instead of workshops on how to change the system. We are tired of the anxiety that hits us when the tax bill comes. For some homeowners, the property tax is a financial burden.

No one should have to spend 15 to 20 hours to take on the government, pleading their case for their home’s appraisal to be lowered a few thousand dollars, year after year. No one should fear the property tax process, but many do because they don’t have the resources to fight back.

Until property taxes are eliminated, we implore our elected officials at all levels — school boards, county, municipal and state — to create change that is meaningful for homeowners. Elected officials have proven that if they want to do something, they can. They have the power and the tools to lower the tax rate and give the maximum protection to homeowners.

They should:

Run a more efficient government. It is time to stop waste. Governments are to be good stewards of other people’s money. Fair and efficient government must do the right thing so homeowners and renters can live in their communities affordably and not be taxed out of their home.

Cut the tax rate in half.

Double or triple the homestead exemptions. The $5,000 exemption offered by the county is roughly only $30 a year, equal to three trips to the coffee shop, one month’s prescription, a half-tank of gas or one bag of dog food.

Freeze the tax burden on the valuations at the year the purchase was made. If someone buys a $150,000 home, they pay taxes at that rate until they sell it. If someone buys a million-dollar home, they know they will pay approximately $33,000 each year in property taxes until they sell.

Replace the property tax with a strong consumer tax.

Taxing residents out of their homes is an ethical, not just economic, issue.

We cannot continue living in fear that we will not be able to afford our property taxes. Join forces for property tax relief, reform and, ultimately, elimination.

Anne Englert has lived in San Antonio for 25 years; she is a Dellview Area Neighborhood Association board member.

May 21, 2022

How San Antonio’s neighborhood associations can boost residents’ enjoyment and drive value

https://www.expressnews.com/lifestyle/home-garden/article/neighborhood-associations-17162956.php?fbclid=IwAR1DInBZujkcreWpu5omo2aG5M6elj-eUYDI9Fd10kp3db3hCZf0TShGxHw

How San Antonio’s neighborhood associations can boost residents’ enjoyment and drive value

Richard A. Marini, Staff writer

May 11, 2022

In 2019, Sean McMains and Kris Spilker put in an offer on a house in Beacon Hill, an older neighborhood of mostly modest bungalows just north of downtown. Two days later, they decided to check out their new neighborhood and take in Porch Fest, the homegrown, progressive house concert sponsored by the Beacon Hill and Alta Vista neighborhood associations.

“I remember there was a mariachi band playing Ozzy Osbourne on someone’s front porch,” Spilker said. “People immediately starting welcoming us, asking our names, where we were from, things like that. When the band stopped, they were like, ‘C’mon with us to the next house.’ ”

There, they enjoyed fajitas and a different band playing jazz.

“Everyone was so friendly, it was astounding. We knew we were home,” said Spilker who, with McMains and their five kids, has now lived in Beacon Hill for three years.

Events like Porch Fest are just one of the benefits of living in an area with a strong and active neighborhood association — and few associations are as active as the one representing Beacon Hill.

Cynthia Spielman, who serves on the steering committee of the Tier One Neighborhood Coalition, an alliance of more than 50 neighborhood groups in the San Antonio area, contends that a good neighborhood association can not only improve residents’ lives, it can also help bring a community together.

“They do this by tackling difficult issue residents face and by sponsoring fun, social events where people get to know one another,” said Spielman.

A strong neighborhood association can also help smooth out differences among neighbors, she said.

“If people have faith that their concerns will be heard, they’ll be less likely to get angry with one another over potentially divisive issues,” said Spielman, who is also a board member of the Beacon Hill association. “They realize, Hey, we’re neighbors; it’s not you against me.”

Neighborhood associations differ from homeowners associations. Neighborhood associations are usually run by volunteers and membership is voluntary. Homeowners associations usually are created by developers, membership is mandatory and requires dues to pay for maintenance of common areas and to enforce standards of appearance within the community.

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The Mission San José Neighborhood Association, which encompasses the area surrounding the historic mission, was founded in 1995 to address a lack of basic infrastructure such as sidewalks, drainage and lighting. Today it continues that fight while also acting as a steward to prevent inappropriate development near the mission.

“Without the association all these years, a lot of that protection might not have happened,” said President Theresa Ybañez, who added that the association also sponsors events such as street clean-ups, a holiday parade and art activities for area children.

In the Monticello Park Historic District on the West Side just north of Woodlawn Lake, the Monticello Park Neighborhood Association puts more emphasis on acts of kindness and education. Volunteers will help elderly neighbors with yard work or by running errands they cannot do themselves. The organization also awards scholarships to high school seniors living within its boundaries.

“But we also have fun,” said Pam Carpenter, the organization’s secretary. “Two or three times a year, we have pink flamingo parties where the yard hosting the party will be ‘flocked’ with one large flamingo statue and a whole lot of little ones.”

Founded in 1978, the Beacon Hill association has become more active in recent years as the neighborhood, like many surrounding downtown, has become a preferred destination for young professionals in search of the amenities of urban living. In addition to being close to downtown, Beacon Hill is also within walking distance of the Pearl, Brackenridge Park and the St. Mary’s Strip.

“The association is having a good moment,” said Spielman, who has lived in Beacon Hill for 21 years. “The neighborhood has a lot to offer, and a lot of younger, newer residents are stepping up and volunteering their time and talents.”

At the same time, however, this influx of well-heeled buyers is quickly pricing out many families, especially non-native English speakers and people of color, who have lived there for years, even generations.

The association has made efforts to help, for example by educating residents how to protest their property tax appraisals. And while the association has a very active Facebook page, it still prints and hand-delivers paper copies of its monthly newsletter to all 2,200 households in the neighborhood, so those uncomfortable being online can stay informed.

Cindy Loredo has lived in Beacon Hill 34 years and said the association has definitely improved her and her neighbors’ quality of life. “During the freeze last year, they came around to check up on everyone,” she said. “Then they told us how we could apply for assistance from the city.”

The association has several volunteer-led committee that deal with hot-button issues, such as zoning, crime and animal welfare.

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When the association hosted a February roundtable on crime, moderated by its President Daniel Hubbeling, it was able to secure both police chief William McManus and City Councilmember Mario Bravo as participants. As the number of stray animals in the neighborhood has become more of an issue, the association created a lending library of humane traps and pet carriers and purchased a $300 microchip scanner to help reunite lost pets with their owners.

“We have two volunteers who handle the scanner, and they probably get calls a couple of time a week,” Hubbeling said.

The association also sponsors social events to help bring neighbors together. In addition to Porch Fest, there are monthly Happy Hours, outdoor movie nights and, this past Easter, an egg hunt with 700 eggs hidden for area children to find.

Despite all these events, the association doesn’t charge annual dues. Instead, it raises money via grants, donations from area businesses, newsletter advertising and fundraisers such as the sale of Fiesta medals. That gives it the financial wherewithal, for example, to purchase audio/visual equipment rather than renting it every time there’s a movie night.

“I donate the use of my sound system, but we probably spent about $1,000 for the rest of the equipment,” said Hubbeling’s wife Kim, who administers the group’s Facebook page.

One of the group’s proudest achievements is the development of the half-mile-long Beacon Hill Linear Park that runs atop a storm water channel from West Hildebrand to Gramercy Place, where it ends at the community garden. The park has footpaths, two playgrounds, picnic areas and a well-used basketball court. Plans call for planting more trees and building a dog park.

The association’s success in securing city funding for the park illustrates its members’ savvy in working with city government.

“We’ve received close to $1 million in bond money since development began almost 10 years ago,” said Jerry Lockey, who has lived in the neighborhood 24 years and is a linear park committee member. “And we’ve learned a lot about the rules and procedures involved in getting these kinds of projects done over that time.”

Operating a successful neighborhood association takes hundreds of volunteer hours as well as committee leaders and a dedicated board. The Hubbelings, for example, estimate they each spend five to 10 hours a week working on association business.

Neighborhood associations interested in upping their game can contact the Tier One Neighborhood Coalition, which holds workshops on issues that impact residents. The group’s website, t1nc.org, and its eponymous Facebook group also contain plenty of helpful information.

rmarini@express-news.net | Twitter: @RichardMarini

May 2, 2022May 3, 2022

Neighborhood Plans, Future Land Use, & UDC Amendment 22-21: Issues

Read the Planning Department’s edit of UDC Amendment 22-21

T1NC chose to work with city staff (DSD and Planning) to modify their proposed 22-21 amendment, seeking to protect existing neighborhood and community plans and to provide for public engagement on future land use. As a result of this work, the Planning Department added language that may help protect neighborhood plans and future land use in neighborhoods as they participate in the sub-area planning process.

Language that may help protect future neighborhood land use:

The Planning Department added a reference to the “important aspect” of previously adopted neighborhood and community plans including their future land use, to the Statement of Purpose in the final version .

Planning also added to Sub-Area Plans: “Goals, objectives and future land use from adopted neighborhood and community plans shall be reviewed and serve as a foundational element…, throughout the development of sub-area plans.” This is important, but neighborhood and community plans and their future land use are to be used as a reference – not as a basis, to develop the larger area sub-area plans.

Planning also commits, in its edited amendment: “…When a proposed sub-area plan includes geographies in a previously adopted neighborhood or community plan, the planning department shall invite …registered neighborhood associations and registered community organizations with boundaries within the previous plan area to review, discuss, and provide input…”

However….

In our Amendment 16-4, which we hoped to incorporate into 22-21, we asked for previously adopted neighborhood and community plans, inclusive of future land use plans, to be incorporated without revision into Sub-Area Plans, thereafter amendable, which was denied because, they stated, incorporation without revision impermissibly restricts City Council performing “legislative” action of plan adoption. We also understood that many neighborhood and community plans have outdated or neighborhood-disliked future land use plans.

Areas of concern with the final version of 22-21 going before PCTAC on May 9:

(3) B, Corridor Plans

The “study areas of a corridor plan should” include areas (1/4) mile, (1,320 feet) of the major arterial, expanding to one-half mile around high traffic stations.

A city block is typically 330’ to 660’, so the corridor plans could potentially infringe higher density development a minimum of 2 blocks into currently residential zoned areas.

(b) (2) Stakeholder Participation

City also added to the final version a section on Stakeholder Participation, (b)(2). – which was not discussed in our meetings.

Besides the involvement of the T1NC UDC Committee, this amendment has been proposed with no “public hearings” and limited public participation process (PPP).

Once sub-area plans get adopted, they will supercede, (a)(5), currently adopted neighborhood and community plans and we’ll have to work within that framework.

(h) Consistency Requirements

Once sub-area plans get adopted, they will supercede, (a)(5), currently adopted neighborhood and community plans and we’ll have to work within that framework. Previous plans won’t be referenced anymore for rezoning applications. The new zoning will be consistent with the new land use.

The larger sub-area plans are too large to address specific individual and smaller neighborhoods needs and objectives which have been removed or been reduced by the new hierarchy of plan types.

Neighborhood Action:

T1NC UDC Committee is not making a recommendation, but urgently request that neighborhoods provide comment.

We should urge everyone – individuals and neighborhoods, to become informed, get involved, and to comment now or at city council if this amendment is supported by PCTAC.

Please contact t1nc.sat@gmail.com for questions.

May 2, 2022May 2, 2022

Large Assisted Living Facilities (ALF) in Residential Neighborhoods

Dear Neighborhoods Across the City,

One of your D7 neighborhoods, Alamo Farmsteads/Babcock Road Neighborhood Association, needs your help. We know this is short notice, but there is still time to voice an opinion at City Council on Thursday, May 5^th.

Item 43: ZONING-Z-2021-10700350 – Requested Zoning: “RE CD” Residential Estate District with a Conditional Use for an Assisted Living Facility (ALF) for up to 10 residents for 6960 Pembroke located in District 7, identified as Item 43 on the agenda for the April 7th City Council Meeting.

Opposition: Staff recommends denial; The Zoning Commission voted unanimously for denial.

Nine (9) of the eleven (11) neighbors within 200’ are in opposition. We had 74% of Alamo Farmsteads residents who submitted their surveys as “In Opposition”. Four Neighborhood Associations submitted as “In Opposition” (3 of which have had recent zoning cases for ALF expansion).

However, Councilwoman Ana Sandoval from District 7 has indicated that she is going to recommend approval of this zoning case and has asked the community to find a compromise with the business owner.

The issue: Assisted Living Facilities (ALF) embedded within residential neighborhoods is a valued service for the community and by right, every residential home in San Antonio can be a 6-resident ALF, but a residential ALF embedded within a neighborhood does have an impact to the nearby neighbors and community and allowing for additional growth of a facility would only add to their impact.

Any property surrounding your home can become a 6-resident ALF regardless if you are in a historic, conservation, HOA, gated community, etc. There are currently 95 residential-type ALFs registered in Bexar County, so this will eventually need to be addressed by every district in San Antonio. Also, this does not include those residential ALFs with less than 4 residents that do not have to register.

Since the City has not developed an overall plan for managing the number and location of these ALFs, and does not have accurate numbers on occupancy rates and total capacity of these facilities; it is premature to approve this request which would set a precedent for other residential ALFs in other districts of San Antonio. Please support us in opposing this zoning request. We ask that you reach out to your council member and ask her /him to listen to their communities. We’ve attached a template letter.

Please also consider a written message to be read at tomorrow’s City Council meeting in opposition to Item 43

To sign up to speak visit www.saspeakup.com

· Click on meetings and events at the top of the page

^·Select City Council A Session for May 5th at 2 p.m.

· Click on the Comments Icon and leave the following written message, if you’d like:

Template Letter

Item number

Name

Neighborhood and Council District

Please deny the request for a RE CD with a Conditional Use for an Assisted Living Facility (ALF) for up to 10 residents for 6960 Pembroke. Assisted Living Facilities (ALF) embedded within residential neighborhoods is a valued service for the community and by right, every residential home in San Antonio can be a 6-resident ALF, but a residential ALF embedded within a neighborhood does have an impact to the nearby neighbors and community and allowing for additional growth of a facility would only add to their impact.

Any residential property can become a 6-resident ALF regardless of type: historic, conservation, HOA, gated community, etc. There are currently 95 residential-type ALFs registered in Bexar County, so this will eventually need to be addressed by every district in San Antonio. Also, this does not include those residential ALFs with less than 4 residents that do not have to register. We recognize the valuable service of ALFs but we also recognize that this is a business and the balance between the service, the business, and the residential neighborhood needs should be balanced in a plan developed by the City.

Since the City has not developed an overall plan for managing the number and location of these ALFs, and does not have accurate numbers on occupancy rates and total capacity of these facilities; it is premature to approve this request which would set a precedent for other residential ALFs in other districts of San Antonio. This request has been denied by staff as well as a unanimous vote of the Zoning Commission. Please support us in opposing this zoning request.

Neighborhoods working together can help make a better City.

Thank you,

Phillip Manna
Alamo Farmsteads/Babcock Road Neighborhood Association