Dateline Normal, Mn. : Walkable Neighborhoods: Condos; Progress Heralded--Fiction

The fall colors are great up north, so I thought I would fire up the old Lincoln and run up Hwy 10, let the miles and miles of billboard signs slip by and head for my favorite getaway, Normal Mn.

Over a strong, no sugar, lots of whipped cream coffee at the local coffee shop across from the Spruce Goose Motel, I mentioned to Herman, my country boy lawyer friend, that because of the high cost of housing, many folks approaching retirement were looking at condos---but were facing a slight problem------cost.

The condos on the mass transit routes, whether in Minneapolis, St. Paul, or Madison, were approaching $300M.

Herman just laughed. " It serves you right, Wolfman. You have seen the marketing about Madison----that it is the new Berkely. Have you been to Berkely lately? Unless you have a rent controlled apartment on campus, you cannot afford to live there. Then he went on, "I read recently that even in downtown Madison, they are building affordable condos of 600 to 800 sq. ft.. I suppose they will sell for $275M.

"Well," I retorted, "Even if you are correct, what is the solution?"

"I am glad you asked," he replied.

"Up here in God's country, we have two types of housing on the drawing boards. The first is "walkable" and the second is "floatable." Both are about 400 sq. ft., and fit into the lifestyle of the modern dude.

The "floatable" housing is more like a riverboat. It fits nicely on one of the lakes up here and can be towed behind one's car.

The "walkable" models are like the old time flats, except smaller. They are crate-like and yes they do have those fold down beds from the wall for a real economy style. Developers love em. They are made from fiberboard and go up quickly. Only the wall that has to support the bed is really well constructed. I think one of these units will still sell for $150M. It is pretty pricey for northern Minn, but when one compares this to Berkely or Chicago---It's a bargain. "

The best thing up here in God's country is the mortgage----we offer a full 75 year mortgage. It makes things real affordable.

Thank goodness I am back in good ol Wisconsin. Where there are none of them floatable neighborhoods. Where we still have affordable housing. And where four walls are well built and not just one.

Alleluia.