down4cle

Hard to say, I had it done as soon as I bought the house because I looked in the attic and it was essentially bare, tops of the joists were visible, maybe 4" of insulation up there. I will say, after adding a ton of insulation, new sealing of all wall gaps & ceiling penetrations and sealing the garage from the inner house wall and new windows, my energy bills are pretty low. We keep the house comfortable and our gas bill is barely $120 in peak of winter. Looking strictly at payback, it's probably not a good deal, but I plan on being here a while. It's definitely quieter. Air conditioning is more expensive but that's because prior home owners didn't plant any trees and the house has zero shade It's unbelievable to me that newer housing has little insulation. Anyway, I hope you are planting some strategically located shade trees if you plan on being there for a while.

^ I wasn't at the Lakewood meeting but a lot of the opposition is coming from the "Save the Hospital" folks. They are completely unable to view the redevelopment as a separate issue. When I have discussions with any of these their irrationality seems to get in the way of a common sense thought. All I need to do is ask them who will operate the hospital since no hospital operator in the region has expressed interest in it. And they just go on a rant about what the mayor did...yada yada yada yada

^ Did you see a lot of saving from the recommended improvements?

Michelle Jarboe had tweeted that someone commented that development and redevelopment is a disease. Where do these people come from?

^ From everything I've read, the insulation makes a much bigger difference than windows. I was fortunate that my 100 year old home already had blown-in insulation when I bought it. I also have the original wood windows but with storm windows as well. My energy costs are fairly low and I don't feel too many drafts in the house.

Do you really think these public meetings are anything but an exercise in futility? Like all these low-information residents are going to affect the status of this project financing? You're right, these meetings are nothing more than a dog and pony show.. I think you are both correct on this for the most part. These public meetings are usually a sham but I worry that if NIMBY's get loud enough that elected leaders will cave.

^ they might be able to influence the school district into not making a TIF deal if the opposition gets loud enough.

I think Pennsylvania used to have (or still does) a LVT only in cites over a certain population. But the laws in PA are probably set up differently than in Ohio, and it could be much more difficult to amend the laws in Ohio to accomplish this. I don't know, I am just speculating. I know that they are working on property tax reform in Columbus now and trying to cap the increases that property owners get when the county does a re-evaluation. These reforms can become problematic if they completely freeze property tax increases. This is a huge problem in California.

I think Pennsylvania used to have (or still does) a LVT only in cites over a certain population. But the laws in PA are probably set up differently than in Ohio, and it could be much more difficult to amend the laws in Ohio to accomplish this. I don't know, I am just speculating. I know that they are working on property tax reform in Columbus now and trying to cap the increases that property owners get when the county does a re-evaluation. I used to be a little more versed in this subject but I haven't kept up with it in a while.

^^ That response was to the comment before yours. Sorry for the confusion.

I think Pennsylvania used to have (or still does) a LVT only in cites over a certain population.

^^ If I am following you correctly, the residual method would (in theory) encourage more development in the urban core because the developed land would have a lower tax basis than vacant land due to the depreciation.

and Woolworth's

^ Land Value Tax should be the basis for all taxes. They cause the least distortion of any tax. The statue of Tom Johnson on Public Square is holding a copy of Progress and Poverty by Henry George. I believe George is one of the earliest proponents of a Land Value tax.

In my walks around the neighborhood I noticed that the used car portion of Barry Buick had been cleared of all cars. I haven't heard of any plans for this parcel.

^that might be true but downtown cleveland is no where near underparked.

Here in Cuyahoga County that seems similar to Parma or Euclid. Historically blue collar areas with lots of mid century bungalows. Still relatively livable and quite affordable.

^ What most people consider to be starter home used to be family homes for people.

Nice Y-Axis. That is a terrible graph for sure.

CBS and Fox are the most difficult signals in the Cleveland market. That's been my experience. It's worth it for me to have Directv just for that alone. Plus I have a bundle that's slightly cheaper than my Internet only service.

^ Oh no, don't start this discussion again. LOL

^ I drive the posted limit with the exception of interstates where I do exceed the limit. However, I accept that I am breaking the law and deserve the punishment that the state has determined is appropriate. It is called living in a society and respecting the rule of law. You call it being a lemming I call it being personally responsible for my actions.

^ Translation: all laws are made up by all knowing government, therefore, I should just do whatever I want.

^ My use of the phrase common sense was mocking another person that brought it up.

Where does your hatred of cars come from. It is obvious that your bias against cars has blinded you from common sense policy I don't hate cars. I own one and enjoy the convenience it provides. I just don't like entitled reckless drivers that endanger those around them. Using fines from cameras to make roads safer is about as common sense as it gets.