Althouse: "It is the driver who takes tourists on Jeep tours. It is the veteran who works as a carpenter. It is the person who works at the Whole Foods..."

March 20, 2024

"It is the driver who takes tourists on Jeep tours. It is the veteran who works as a carpenter. It is the person who works at the Whole Foods..."

"... that sells sashimi-grade salmon for $44.99 a pound. They all live a precarious life sleeping every night in their cars parked somewhere around Sedona, Ariz. It’s become a big problem for the tony tourist town, which is why the Sedona City Council approved a program last week that temporarily converts an empty parking lot into a place where families or workers or students can live while trying to find a permanent home.... There was an outpouring of emotion from both sides of the issue.... 'The site is likely to become a magnet for chronically unemployed people who come to Sedona seeking an essentially free place to sleep,' wrote resident William D. Noonan.... Another resident, Joanne L. Makielski, wrote that it was unfortunate that it had to be considered, but it did. 'These are people who work in our town and we all depend on them. We must support them....' [Mayor Scott] Jablow said... 'Who’s gonna run the food stores?'..."

From "Wealthy Sedona’s answer to housing crisis: A parking lot to sleep in" (WaPo).

49 comments:

Leland said...: I’m sure that will work and all will be fine.; 3/20/24, 8:58 AM
n.n said...: They were deported from Martha's Vineyard with righteous indignation. They displace People of Black in the Rotting Apple. They're invited to sip municipal water when the grass wilts.; 3/20/24, 8:59 AM
Bob Boyd said...: Good thing they brought in literally millions of illegal aliens who are spending government money to compete for limited affordable housing and drive down wages.; 3/20/24, 9:00 AM
Kevin said...: The future is here, it's just collectively parked.; 3/20/24, 9:04 AM
wild chicken said...: Oh, and everywhere else too...; 3/20/24, 9:04 AM
rehajm said...: It's a problem. Sedona, Jackson, Tahoe, places in the southeast. The work from home movement means once sleepy tourist destinations are now home to more people, stressing all the services in the community. Normally a solution is to create more housing but that's not always possible, especially for places like Sedona limited by geography and or economic and political impediments to growth.

...but they shouldn't be lumping in carpenters and trades with the people that work at Whole Foods. A competent carpenter will quickly become a one percent-er in Big Sky or Jackson or Truckee or Telluride...; 3/20/24, 9:05 AM
rehajm said...: Those Jeeps are Pink...; 3/20/24, 9:06 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "...but they shouldn't be lumping in carpenters and trades with the people that work at Whole Foods."

Yeah, notice how they used the expression "veteran who works as a carpenter." Is there a difference between a carpenter and a person who works as a carpenter?; 3/20/24, 9:19 AM
robother said...: At least the chattel slaves were provided quarters on the plantation. And there were servant's quarters in the noble estates of Europe. Tenements in the Lower East Side. But thanks to our environmental/zoning/code obsessed inflation-driven housing market, parking lots are the best we can do for the working class. Seen versions of this happen all over Colorado.; 3/20/24, 9:19 AM
Geoff Matthews said...: But approve low-income housing like apartments? That's a bridge too far.; 3/20/24, 9:20 AM
Aggie said...: We need more affordable housing for our taxpayers! ", they cried, as they spent millions providing mid-long-term housing for illegal aliens in hotel rooms, together with a stipend and free legal aid to help them file for 'asylum' from their former, unpleasant, third-world living circumstances.; 3/20/24, 9:21 AM
Enigma said...: Sedona?! The horror, I thought the anti-growth rich people had created utopia!

Even though Sedona is not a National Park, it has nice scenery and could easily have been one. Some years ago they converted the local highways into paid parking "admission" areas that resemble National Park parking lots. Then, visitors without adequate infrastructure walk around the mountains to do New Age hippie stuff at the a spiritual vortex (plural vortices). Or, they climb the rock that resembles a breast with an erect nipple. Or, they visit the church that resembles what may be erect inside a man's underpants.

Spiritual vortices seem to be virile...

https://www.sedonatourguide.com/bell-rock-trail/
https://www.chapeloftheholycross.com/

Crocodile tears from me, as these are the wealthy people who made their own beds. A similar housing issue affects uber-wealthy Lake Tahoe in California/Nevada. Similar issues affect almost EVERY National Park nationwide, as pro-wilderness anti-growth is not compatible with millions of visitors or low income housing or basic infrastructure.

Servants are very expensive these days, and they have so many selfish demands.; 3/20/24, 9:23 AM
Butkus51 said...: aka destruction of the middle class

all planned; 3/20/24, 9:24 AM
Quaestor said...: The Harmonic Convergence, does anyone one here recall that nonsense? If not, allow me to stipulate that it was the sociological phenomenon that cleaved Sidona into the haves and have nots with no middle ground. The haves of Sidona have so much resting on an unshakable foundation of trust funds, inheritance, and blue chip portfolios that no price for any gross hedonism is too much, thereby driving the formerly sane Sidona real estate market utterly barking mad.

Time was that Sidona had but one attraction besides clear skies, cool temperatures, and dramatic vistas — steelhead trout. The anglers who visited Sidona were interested in fishing all day long, sometimes with the assistance of a guide. Nighttime was for beer-fueled bull sessions and deep sleep in warm beds followed by arousal at dark fucking o’clock the next morning. They weren’t interested in living there. They had jobs and families elsewhere demanding full attention 51 of 52 weeks a year to grant them a few days in the season to wet a line, and the only “transformative experience” they might have expected likely involved a bear.; 3/20/24, 9:27 AM
Larry J said...: "Is there a difference between a carpenter and a person who works as a carpenter?"

Is that veteran actually a trained carpenter or someone who is more of a handyman? There's more to carpentry than sawing 2x4s and operating a nail gun.; 3/20/24, 9:34 AM
tcrosse said...: How about a person who identifies as a carpenter?; 3/20/24, 9:40 AM
MadisonMan said...: I wonder how the housing crunch would change in Sedona if AirBnBs/VRBOs were not allowed.; 3/20/24, 9:46 AM
hawkeyedjb said...: A couple of years ago Mrs. Hawkeye and I took a long road trip around the United States. Pretty much every tourist place we visited had the same problem: lack of housing for workers. One of the contributors to that situation is the steady conversion of housing to VRBOs and the like.; 3/20/24, 9:48 AM
Jupiter said...: "It’s become a big problem for the tony tourist town ...".

Bullshit. It's been recognized as a golden opportunity by some government grifter and his dirtbag "do-gooder" pals, and sold to a bunch of white women who went to college for four years to enhance their native gullibility. This is not a "problem" that you "fix". It is an ever-expanding hole that you pound money down.; 3/20/24, 9:48 AM
Whiskeybum said...: Sedona is a place where the geography both makes it attractive (which drives up prices for real estate) and somewhat limits what can be built there. The residents want to maintain the natural beauty of the area and limit sprawl, but then the less well-off people that support their lifestyles can't afford to be part of the community. Even the nearby towns (i.e., within a half-hour drive) are relatively expensive.

They need a mix of lower cost housing in the surrounding area. They idea of a 'free-live-in-your-car' park is just inviting serious problems. I would also reject a very large lower-cost apartment complex - these become problems like the car park over time. Small, affordable apartment complexes scattered across the area would be a better approach. They may even need to be subsidized in some way by the residents of Sedona if they want to keep their pristine upscale image intact.; 3/20/24, 9:48 AM
Freder Frederson said...: A competent carpenter will quickly become a one percent-er in Big Sky or Jackson or Truckee or Telluride...

A one-percenter in the U.S. makes almost $600,000 a year and has a net worth of over $13 million. I am sure in Big Sky, Jackson, Truckee or Telluride the one-percenters are even richer than that.

A competent carpenter, while he or she may make a good living, they are not going to elevate themselves, short of founding and working for years building a construction company, to that level of wealth.; 3/20/24, 9:58 AM
tim in vermont said...: The ten million or so illegals, err, sorry, nobody is illegal, criminal aliens who have crossed the border since Biden seized power have noting to do with the skyrocketing cost of housing, so please ignore the evidence of your eyes, it's very important that you do so, otherwise, Trump might win.; 3/20/24, 10:02 AM
tim in vermont said...: The number of criminal aliens exceeds the American birth rate, which means that it exceeds the ability of our systems, such as health care, to accommodate them, since they are almost all of limited skills, high value people don't need to leave their countries for economic reasons.

Sure, accept a few, but when it overwhelms our health care system, our ability to deliver housing, etc, one has to wonder who really benefits from this flood of cheap labor, people bidding up rents, especially when you don't need IDs to vote?

What is really rich is that it is framed as a protection for Black Americans to not require ID, when the actual outcome is their replacement as not only labor, but as the foundational block of the Democratic Party, all the while driving up the cost of their rents.; 3/20/24, 10:11 AM
Anthony said...: MadisonMan said...
I wonder how the housing crunch would change in Sedona if AirBnBs/VRBOs were not allowed.

I'm down in Mesa and people were batting around the number that something like 40% of the housing in Sedona is short-term rentals (STRs). A lot (maybe even most) of them are corporate investment properties, not what you imagine it to be, Snowbirds who rent while they're away. Our development voted to ban STRs a couple years ago. But it's the wealthy as well; up in the San Juan Islands (WA) new money tech people have made a couple of the islands unaffordable to residents who do the work necessary to keep the wealthy happy. Some of them have had to move to the mainland and commute by ferry every day.; 3/20/24, 10:14 AM
rehajm said...: A one-percenter in the U.S. makes almost $600,000 a year and has a net worth of over $13 million. I am sure in Big Sky, Jackson, Truckee or Telluride the one-percenters are even richer than that.

I don't know if you're being earnest- probably not, but depending on the year it looks like you are looking at the average income of the percentile, not the threshold...and I'm using the national statistic and not comparing locals.; 3/20/24, 10:25 AM
AZ Bob said...: We went AirBnB after seeing hotel rooms skyrocket above $500 a night and more. We've even stayed in Cottonwood, which is about 30 minutes away, to score a more affordable room. Come to think of it, Flagstaff is 45 minutes away. These commutes and longer are commonplace in Los Angeles.

BTW if you're in Sedona, set a reservation at the Elote Cafe for an authentic and high-end approach to Southwest cuisine. It books up fast.

Looking for a hike with views, start with the Airport Loop or Soldiers Pass.; 3/20/24, 10:30 AM
PM said...: tcrosse "How about a person who identifies as a carpenter?"
Thanks for the coffee on my keyboard.; 3/20/24, 10:36 AM
Rusty said...: Freder Frederson said...
"A competent carpenter will quickly become a one percent-er in Big Sky or Jackson or Truckee or Telluride...

A one-percenter in the U.S. makes almost $600,000 a year and has a net worth of over $13 million. I am sure in Big Sky, Jackson, Truckee or Telluride the one-percenters are even richer than that.

A competent carpenter, while he or she may make a good living, they are not going to elevate themselves, short of founding and working for years building a construction company, to that level of wealth."
Where the demand is high it doesn't take all that long.; 3/20/24, 10:39 AM
Mason G said...: Sounds like a bunch of stupid people (rich and poor) doing stupid stuff.

Rich people: You're worried who's going to run your stores? Pay them enough to afford to rent a place.

Poor people: You're going to live in your car in a parking lot? Until when? If all you have is a car, use it to drive somewhere that you can earn enough to rent a place.

Or get the government involved, I'm sure that'll turn out just fine.; 3/20/24, 10:43 AM
MadTownGuy said...: Sounds like a modern version of Hooverville; or, maybe, Occupy Sedona.; 3/20/24, 10:53 AM
Darkisland said...: Didn't king tut have a condo made of stone-a in Sedona?

Before he moved to babilonia

John Henry; 3/20/24, 10:56 AM
Hassayamper said...: Time was that Sidona had but one attraction besides clear skies, cool temperatures, and dramatic vistas — steelhead trout.

Are you thinking of someplace else? You've repeatedly misspelled "Sedona", and while Oak Creek has a viable population of brown trout and is also stocked with rainbows, I have never heard of steelhead trout within five hundred miles of here. In fact, steelheads are anadromous (ocean-going) by definition, aren't they? Out of the question in Arizona.; 3/20/24, 11:14 AM
rehajm said...: Where the demand is high it doesn't take all that long.

It really doesn't. We write the checks...; 3/20/24, 11:14 AM
Old and slow said...: I live 30 minutes drive from Sedona. Rents here are normal. This is a non issue. Sedona resorts run on resorts run private free shuttle buses to bring employees to work from where I live.; 3/20/24, 11:15 AM
Deep State Reformer said...: As a former social worker I can say for sure that there are no good "ideologically-based" answers (eg, up by the bootstrap laissez faire, vs. a $75 minimum wage)to any of this. We all fucking know it too. Stop with the mud fights and pissing matches already.; 3/20/24, 11:19 AM
Chris said...: I love Sedona. Been there too many times to count. "No one actually lives in Sedona" is what the bar tenders, waitresses, shop clerks, art gallery mangers tell me. No one can afford to live there. The homes that are there, are vacation homes of the uber welthy. Or, they are investment properties with VRBO or the like. The folks that work in Sedona all commute in from surrounding areas like Jerome. Some as far as Flagstaff. I've alwasy wanted to live there, but that will NEVER happen.; 3/20/24, 11:46 AM
hombre said...: I lived in Sedona for several years. It is a beautiful place with horrendous traffic and housing problems run by idiot elected officials.

I mean who would have thought that opening Sedona up to short term tourist rentals would cause problems?/S; 3/20/24, 12:04 PM
Joe Smith said...: Life is brutal, vicious, and short as someone said.

I can't afford to live in Atherton or Montecito or Bel Air, as much as I'd love to.

Instead, my wife and I worked our asses off, always living below our means, and now have a beautiful home in a quiet neighborhood in the suburbs.

My grandparents couldn't afford to live here; they lived in a trailer park. That's what they could afford.

Where did the entitlement come from?; 3/20/24, 12:09 PM
Rick67 said...: I first encountered a version of this last year when visiting around Old Forge, New York just inside the Adirondack State Park. I quickly noticed foreign workers in stores and restaurants. My aunt (who volunteers on the train that runs in the area) explained this is because locals can no longer afford to live in their own homes. Why? Largely because of property taxes. So they leave for places with lower cost-of-living.

Meanwhile local attractions, stores, restaurants - which rely heavily on tourism - have trouble finding local workers. So they bring them in from elsewhere. Give them a room, let them work through the tourist season, let them go back, hopefully with some saved income.; 3/20/24, 12:15 PM
Mason G said...: "They all live a precarious life sleeping every night in their cars parked somewhere around Sedona, Ariz. It’s become a big problem for the tony tourist town, which is why the Sedona City Council approved a program last week that temporarily converts an empty parking lot into a place where families or workers or students can live while trying to find a permanent home...."

If people living in cars is a problem, I'm wondering in what universe the solution is to make it easier for people to live in their cars?; 3/20/24, 1:03 PM
Old and slow said...: There IS a mix of affordable housing in the area! Just not in Sedona proper. There is not a housing problem here. I am a landlord with lots of cheap rentals within 35 minutes of Sedona. Anyone who lives in their car is doing so by choice.; 3/20/24, 1:48 PM
Old and slow said...: It's also worth pointing out that many Sedona service workers are quite well paid. I know servers who are making $500 - $600 per night waiting tables, and valet parking guys pulling in $300+ per night in tips. The resort housekeepers are uniformly Mexican nationals and almost all ride the free shuttle busses to work from where they live in Cottonwood. It's only a half hour away.

This is not a problem, but the parking lot camp site will be.; 3/20/24, 2:07 PM
Rusty said...: In fact, steelheads are anadromous (ocean-going) by definition, aren't they?
Or any other body of water large enough to trigger that gene. The Great Lakes.; 3/20/24, 3:49 PM
rsbsail said...: This is a stupid idea. First off, just southwest of Sedona is Cottonwood, 19 miles, and it is not a rich playground. I've been to Sedona and Cottonwood many times. I had a much longer commute in Houston.; 3/20/24, 4:33 PM
Mikey NTH said...: I guess the place is too fancy for public housing.; 3/20/24, 4:45 PM
Oligonicella said...: Ann Althouse:
Is there a difference between a carpenter and a person who works as a carpenter?

Yes. Assuming the same skill level, it's a license issue. And then, only where it's required and enforced.

I built my last house myself. Just know what you're doing and pass inspection.; 3/20/24, 5:09 PM
Craig Mc said...: Five minutes later: CHAZ Mk.II; 3/20/24, 5:31 PM
Mason G said...: The folks in Sedona should get in touch with San Francisco's rulers. They have lots of experience with the homeless, I'm sure they can help out with some tips and tricks.; 3/20/24, 9:12 PM
Earnest Prole said...: American capitalism may yet be undone by its contradictions.; 3/21/24, 6:30 AM