Editorial: Destruction of a Community

There has been a rumor that the public housing units in Old Town Alexandria were going to be demolished and turned into townhomes. Well, that rumor is true. The City of Alexandria started bulldozing them this April and the new townhomes will replace them this summer.

The new townhomes, known as Old Town Commons, will cost more than $500,000. These townhomes might be stunning, but is it the right thing to do? The public housing units are home to many low-income families, handicapped people, and senior citizens. This change will drastically affect the people living in the Old Town neighborhood. When the city rebuilt the Charles Houston Recreation Center, the facility includes a workout room, pool, a new and improved basketball gymnasium. Because the facility was so much newer than its predecessor, I knew then that they were going to destroy the public housing that surrounded it.

The main reason for building these townhomes is to bring the wealthy and upper-middle class in, and force the low-income residents out. Also, this is a race issue as well. Most of the people in the public housing facilities are African-American and Latino. It does not seem that Alexandria is trying to be more diverse.

The most shocking element out this whole situation is Mayor William D. Euille. He is a native Alexandrian and is from the Parker Madden Public Housing, also known as “The Berg.” Andrew Winfree, a former telephone engineer, lived in “The Berg,” and is not surprised with Euille’s decision. “There has been more things open to him than me, like integration. He experienced more things with the white race,” said Winfree. Winfree also believes that a boundary should be put in place, “If they can relocate them to better housing, I’m with it,” said Winfree.

Winfree emphasized the communication of the people in the neighborhood. He said that the residents are not together anymore like they used to be. That is exactly correct; many people these days do not care about anything. Years ago, people in the community actually communicated with each other. They discussed issues and solved them. Today, people are not involved. If people cared more about their communities, maybe this terrible situation would not exist.

The housing projects have a lot of history to them. Many people do not know that the Berg was founded during the Civil War. It got its name from slaves who left Petersburg and stayed in northeast Alexandria after it was occupied in 1861. Later, the Berg’s well-known sights were the James Bland and Samuel Madden Homes, both housing units being named after influential African-Americans. Earl Lloyd, who was the first African-American in the National Basketball Association, is from “The Berg”. The city has already torn down the Berg; this was not a good change. Tearing down “The Berg” ignores the history of Alexandria. City Hall does not care about its history. The people who lived there in the past will have no recollection of what happened because of Alexandria’s loss of community, today.

Samantha X., who wished not to reveal her identity, has lived in public housing for 13 years. She was informed about the situation in 2007, but in her opinion, she does not think this is a bad idea. “No, I don’t think it’s wrong…. They’re not tearing them down, their rebuilding them. It’s still public housing…… but just modern and up to date,” said Samantha. She is not worried because they will place current tenants in other areas in Alexandria. She also said that her second option is section eight, which will allow her to take vouchers to apply for different places to live in Alexandria.

Yes, I agree with Ms. X, they are rebuilding them, but make no mistake, these new townhomes, starting in the high $500,000, are not public housing. Although, 10 percent of Old Town Commons will be for low and fixed income residents, this is not public housing. In addition, most of the apartment complexes do not offer vouchers anymore.

Alexandrians pay one of the highest property taxes in Northern Virginia. On average, a townhouse in the city costs $500,000 or more. In 2009, the average income for a household in Alexandria was $54,000. This year, the average income for an Alexandrian household is $89,000.

Alexandria has changed, and not for the better. Euille’s plan of tearing down public housing is plainly ridiculous and immoral. It is wrong to force most of the low income people out of the city. He is forgetting his values and heritage. Has being mayor changed him? Has he forgotten where he came from?