Below is an email I received from the Ballentine-Dutch Fork Civic Association. It appears it’s a forward from our local County Councilman, Bill Malniowski asking for your input on a proposed Housing Development in our area.

As information, here is the letter I sent last week on your behalf. As Councilman Malinowski mentions, a letter from you can also help.

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This relates to the previous e-mails regarding the low income apartments they want to put across from Ballentine Elementary school. This would be 56 apartments of low income housing. There are already new apartments on 176 which have 316 units as well as new apartments on Marina Road of 216 apartments. The developers claim that their “market research” indicates this type of housing is needed in Ballentine due to the increase in “retail business”. Is this what you want your community to be for the future, consisting of continual apartments. This is not the right direction for our town of Ballentine.

Subject: Wendover Housing Project

Please have as many people as possible IMMEDIATELY write letters of objection to the housing project across from Ballentine Elementary school. While it may not be possible to get them all in one envelope for a thicker, more impressive stack of letters, at least get them sent out ASAP.

They should be addressed to Ms. Laura Nicholson, Development Director, SC State Housing Finance & Development Authority, 300-C Outlet Pointe Blvd., Columbia, SC 29210.

The letter should state why he/she feels Wendover Housing Partners, LLC of Altamonte Springs, Florida should be denied their request for Low Income Housing Tax Credits to construct 56 units of just over 3 acres across from Ballentine Elementary School.

Some of those reasons could be the overcrowding of schools already at or exceeding capacity, increased traffic delays and congestion, the lack of need for this type of housing in the Ballentine area, and no public transportation to get residents to jobs that will obviously be located somewhere else in the Midlands area since there is no real job market here.

If you had time to review the market research/analysis conducted the person who did it is comparing the need for this type of housing to already existing and filled developments in the Harbison area, stating it is only 6 miles away. That is a totally ridiculous comparison in an effort to skew the figures. It would be like saying a need for low income housing exists in Shandon or Forest Acres because they need it in W. Cola or Cayce.

Since their application was due at the Authority by last Friday get those letters out now.

Bill Malinowski