Callaghan on the Winthrop

Peter Callaghan has been a wonderful advocate for the restoration of the Winthrop Hotel. His article today is once again spot on.

He asks:

What if there were a way for the building to be restored as a gorgeous hotel and public meeting place and create a home for low-income people to keep living in the neighborhood? What if the developers could build low-income housing nearby for the current residents before work on the restoration begins?

I'd take it one step further: build a few housing projects to spread out the low-income housing. It's the concentration of poverty that has been so hard for the Theater District. But if the projects were spread around downtown, we wouldn't just be relocating a problem, we would be removing it altogether.

I also appreciate that Callaghan is seeking to get rid of the dichotomies between those who want to see a hotel and those who want to help low-income residents. Because a first-class hotel can do both.

But why hasn't anyone pointed out that a hotel is a job-creator? Is it possible that jobs at the Winthrop could help more families than housing at the Winthrop? Would turning the Winthrop into a first-class hotel (and the revitalizated businesses it would create around it) provide living wages for the equivalent number of familes it currently houses?

The math might be interesting.

And if we could move the low-income housing assistance to other properties, plus provide the jobs at the Winthrop, we might begin to see real progress.