King wants incentives to replace housing ratios

By LISA HAARLANDER
Collegian Staff Writer

Undergraduate Student Government President Mike King told the State College Planning Commission yesterday that he wants to replace rental housing ratios with incentives in a proposed plan to solve the housing problem.

King opposes the ratio part of the commission's RENU plan --Ratio, Enforcement, Neighborhoods and University -- because he said it discriminates against students.

"The ratio proposal would further restrict future housing opportunities for 80 percent of this borough's population -- the student residents," he said. "Let's accomplish our goals through positive instead of negative means."

King proposed giving families in the borough a tax rebate as a way to keep them in the area. King, who interned in New Jersey Senate Majority Leader John Bennett's office for a summer, said he based his plan on a rebate New Jersey gives to homeowners.

The commission and four nonvoting community representatives, including King, refined the plan yesterday and will present it to the State College Borough Council Monday night. If approved, the commission will work out details such as what percent of rental housing to allow in certain areas. The commission must also decide whether to create an ordinance that would make property owners pay for chronically disorderly tenants who require municipal services, such as the police.

Commission member Drew Hyman said he favors incentives and suggested a plan that started with incentives instead of ratios such as "IRENU." But Commission Chairman Peter Everett said incentives should be distributed throughout the plan.

"We can put carrots throughout the whole thing," he said. For instance, Everett said that the plan could allow rental units with on-site managers to have more occupants because the renters would have greater supervision.

Although not all commission members want to replace ratios with incentives, King isn't the only one who opposes controlling rental housing by limiting the percentage on each block.

Four others opposed it -- Centre Region Residential Owners Association President Ginny Chuba, Senior Vice President for Finance Gary Schultz and commission members Dan Wallace and Katherine Raiser -- while six approved the ratio idea.

"I'm glad that some members are interested in pursuing my incentives proposal," King said, "but I intended it as a substitute for the ratio aspect."