Tuesday, the Starkville Board of Aldermen passed a moratorium Tuesday to prohibit new development of multi-family housing units for up to six months.
Recently, many people have raised concerns about the overdevelopment of housing in Starkville. The board has responded by temporarily halting the development of multi-family housing in order to examine the housing situation in the city now.
The city should be commended for handling the situation justly and promptly. The board did not halt development outright. They are taking the time to examine the situation and come up with the best solution to any possible problems.
People have brought up several possible problems with overdevelopment, using the examples of Old Charleston and Stark Crossing, the new multi-family housing complexes.
One possible problem, as shown by the above housing complexes, is the quality of new housing development. New developments can be cheaply-made and overpriced. In the meantime, they can lower the beauty and property values of formerly nice-looking neighborhoods.
If cheap housing continues to be developed, any present problems can become a lot worse in 10 years.
Another problem can lie in the overcrowding of the market for housing in Starkville. If so many people are moving into the new housing developments, the older apartment and housing complexes could suffer.
Fewer housing complexes cause these places to compete for customers and good reputations. This tends to keep rent low and service good for residents.
These problems have not been proven. They are merely concerns many citizens have had. The next six months of study will go a long way in looking at some of these possible problems.
It will be the responsibility of the city to study any possible problems and come up with a plan of action. But remember, it is also the responsibility of the citizens of Starkville to inform the city government of any problems. Let’s hope that the government will eventually reach a decision beneficial to everyone.
The Reflector editorial board is made up of opinion editor Angela Adair, news editor Elizabeth Crisp, sports editor Craig Peters, entertainment editor Dustin Barnes, managing editor Pam McTeer and editor in chief Josh Foreman.