It's déjà vu all over again as the NAHA and New Hope ask the BZA for variances to build housing units in three locations near West Street.

The Board of Zoning Appeals meets this Tuesday evening (May 1), and three items on the BZA agenda, each seeking a variance, bear a striking similarity to each other.

The past few days have been hectic, and I haven't had time to research this thoroughly (paging my friend Mike), so I'm going to wing it.

The fact that these 30 duplexes and five single-family dwellings represent a marriage of the New Albany Housing Authority and New Hope suggests they're leveraging Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), as explained in this article.

The LIHTC program does not provide housing subsidies. Instead, the program provides tax incentives, written into the Internal Revenue Code, to encourage developers to create affordable housing. These tax credits are provided to each State based on population and are distributed to the State’s designated tax credit allocating agency. In turn, these agencies distribute the tax credits based on the State’s affordable housing needs with broad outlines of program requirements from the federal government. This is done through the Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) process.

And, given the lengthy bureaucratic process involved, I'm also going to guess that these unusual non-demolition projects fell into David Duggins' lap (dance) courtesy of former NAHA director Bob Lane, who took me on a tour one day a few years ago and pointed out these pieces of property as future building sites.

In short, the colonizing forces would seem to be following the pre-existing plan put together by the deposed Lane. Consequently, I'm issuing a Gahan Personality Cult Alert (GPCA), and you should be on the lookout for the mayor and his vicious sycophantic lickspittles taking credit for someone else's work.

Because they can, and will. If I'm wrong, let me know and I'll make the necessary corrections.

TO: New Albany Board of Zoning Appeals
FROM: Scott Wood, Director
SUBJECT: Regular Meeting, Tuesday, May 1st, 2018
DATE: April 26th, 2018

TENTATIVE AGENDA

The regular meeting of the New Albany Board of Zoning Appeals will be held on Tuesday, May 1st, 2018 at 7:00 p.m., in the Assembly Room (Room 331) City-County Building, New Albany, Indiana, at which time a Public Hearing will be held to consider the following petitions ...

We're only concerned with the last three public hearings. I've inserted satellite photos after each docket.

Docket B-20-18: The New Albany Housing Authority, by David Duggins, and New Hope Development Services Inc., by James Bosley requests a Land Use Variance to permit 18 duplexes (36 units) and two single-family dwellings that will not meet development standards in the R-2, Urban Residential district, at 801 through 826 Linden Meadows Court and 750, 752, 754, 756, 758, 761, 763, and 765 Linden Street.

Docket B-21-18: The New Albany Housing Authority, by David Duggins, and New Hope Development Services Inc., by James Bosley requests a Land Use Variance to permit nine duplexes and that will not meet development standards in the R-2, Urban Residential district, at 66 Valley View Court.

Docket B-22-18: The New Albany Housing Authority, by David Duggins, and New Hope Development Services Inc., by James Bosley requests a Land Use Variance to permit three duplexes and three single-family dwellings that will not meet development standards in the R-2, Urban Residential district, at 320, 323, 329, 333, 335, 342, and 346 Ealy Street.

Got something to say about it? Here's how you can be heard.

Written suggestions and/or objections to said dockets may be filed with the New Albany City Board of Zoning Appeals, Room 329, City-County building, New Albany, Indiana, on or before the date of said meeting. Written objections to the proposal that are filed with the Secretary of the Commission before the hearing shall be considered. Interested persons desiring to present oral comments on the proposal shall be given the opportunity to be heard at the above-mentioned time and place.

Said Public Hearing may be continued from time to time as may be found necessary by the BZA. Any person that may require reasonable accommodation to attend the meeting or to comment upon the above-listed docket may make their wishes known in writing, or by contacting the Commission at 1(812) 948-5333 (Voice) Indiana Statewide Relay 1-800-743-3333 (Hearing Impaired).