DONALD S. WEISS
____________________________________________
555 W. 151 St., #26, N.Y.C., N.Y. 10031
Tel: (917) 923-2441 / Fax: (212) 283-6522
E-Mail: DWeiss5348@aol.com
Modification of Community Living Centers Idea
December 17, 2009
Community Living Centers (CLC’s) would be our first totally green cities in America. They would be built in rural America, where land is chaep, or in cities that require revitalization (Buffalo, Detroit, et al).
CLC’s:
* Would have their own profit oriented businesses, manufacturing, call centers, etc. Members would work in the business
* Could be used partially, or wholly, as modified nursing homes &/or assisted living facilities
* Could be built by any combination of:
1. Federal money - How would taxpayers feel about our money being used to build high quality real estate - a real chance to have our dollars go to an appreciating asset.
2. Philanthropists - What better way to give back to America. How about an Oprah Winfrey, Illinois or a Bill Gates, Washington?
3. Corporations - With the greatly reduced “cost” of labor, we could bring manufacturing and other business back to America.
* Could be used to help our homeless population, including the large number of homeless vets. It has been written that great societies take care of those who are not capable of taking care of themselves.
*Could be geared toward teaching skills so the member, if they desire, can get a job a live independently.
* Would be communal in nature with members sharing responsibility for cooking, cleaning, child care, maintenance, administration, etc.
* Would provide an alternative to poverty other than our cities. I have calculated if New York City and Los Angeles were “allowed” to become primarily middle class cities again, they would both benefit by an addition $100 Billion per year in new revenue.
* Would be an immediate boost to the American economy and provide a senses of a way to solve our huge problems, financial, physical and spiritual. We are a declining civilization.
Modification of Community Living Centers Idea - May 2009
As outlined below the "Home Units" section, I have modified my idea of Community Living Centers to make the facilities completely "green". They would the first fully green cities in America! The idea of Community Living Centers, originally, was to establish an alternative to poverty, other than our cities. This would allow our cities to become middle class again & greatly increase the revenue of cities to allow them to take care of themselves. Current conditions helped establish the idea of Community Living Centers - Home Units, as described below.
A Plan For A Revitalized America?
Community Living Centers
 Premise: It does not make much sense to “take care of” poverty in our most expensive real estate - our cities. But since we have no alternative for poverty, we have come to accept poverty “belongs” in our great cities. (In addition, rent regulations in NYC and LA ostensibly prevent change!) I have calculated that if NYC and LA were all middle class, the additional revenue each year to each city would be $100 BILLION! CLC’s would be built, as green cities, in our least expensive real estate, rural America or cities that require revitelization (Buffalo, Detroit plus +).
CLC’s would teach skills - I understand there is a need for 1 million new nurses in the next 5 years in America. In addition, CLC’s would have their own profit oriented businesses - manufacturing (companies could bring manufacturing back to America as the labor cost would be very low), farming (Michelle Obama has it right that we need more organic food), cottage industries, call centers (I spoke to someone in India yesterday - we both had a problem understanding each other), etc.
There are many good uses for CLC’s including training people & giving them a positive momentum to their lives. CLC’s could be used partially as assisted living & nursing home like facilities to help reduce our health care costs. CLC’s would be cities & towns in their own right and could be the first fully green towns in America. The government would be spending taxpayers money on constructing high quality, green, real estate - a good long term investment for the American taxpayer!
Financial Incentive: I have calculated that if the estimated 1 million poor people in NYC (I heard recently that there are 2 million poor in NYC) were replaced by middle class, there would be an extra $100 BILLION per yr. in NYC’s coffers. (If each poor person costs $50,000 per yr. including the cost of social services, etc. and each middle class person contributed $50,000 per yr. in paying taxes and the flow of money, this difference is $100 BILLION per yr!)
Effectuating the Plan:
1. Large facilities would be built in rural America or created in cities that require revitalization (Buffalo, Detroit, etc.) where real estate is much cheaper than our great cities. They would become towns and cities in their own right. There are 30 million poor & 1+ million homeless and 30 million poor in America.
2. Community Living Centers (CLC’s) could be funded by government, corporations (bring manufacturing back to America?) and/or philanthropists (Bill Gates, Washington; Oprah Winfrey, Illinois?).
3. CLC’s would be built totally green. We would be creating real estate - which always goes up in value over the long term. This could be the way the government protects the large sums of money be expended to support our economy. The massive spending would be a boost to the economy.
4. CLC’s would be geared toward teaching skills.
5. CLC’s would have profit oriented businesses - farming, manufacturing, cottage industries, call centers, etc. - that the members would work in to help with their own sustenance. Would this new “low cost” of labor allow us to bring light manufacturing back to America?
6. CLC members would communally help with cooking, cleaning, maintenance, child care, etc. The cost of social services in America would be greatly reduced.
7. CLC’s could be places where National Service requirements are met & other people might want to live or spend time.
8. Medical residents could be required to spend time at a CLC to assist with the many medical needs.
9. CLC’s could become required way stations for immigrants to: teach them English, give them a skill, if needed, make sure they are not here to destroy us.
10. CLC’s would provide an alternative to poverty other than our great American cities. The LA Tines reported that 40% of LA’s population is considered poor. Would it be immoral to allow the Bronx to become middle class again? CLCs could become a solution to homelessness in America - it’s embarrassing to see how the wealthiest country in the world can not figure out how to help this population.
12. CLC’s could become an economic boom with CLC construction, revitalization of our cities, giving skilled training to people who, with the right training, could become middle class. America could regain it’s unique place in the world with a large body of skilled workers and dignity for caring for our homeless & poor.
13. CLC’s would give a strong positive sense to Americans that we have a direction to help solve our problems on many levels.
14. Members who stay and “qualify” could be given low interest government loans to purchase their units if they want to stay at the CLCC.
15. Upper schools at CLC’s, for children there, would offer 2 alternative paths to start in the 9th grade: 1. Academic or 2. Technical.
Respectively Submitted:
Donald S. Weiss
May 14, 2009
DWeiss5348@aol.com
CLCProposal-5-14-09
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IDEAS FOR OBAMA (and America)
COMMUNITY LIVING CENTERS - Home Units
TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOLS of AMERICA
Community Living Centers - Home Units
"The Homeless & Foreclosure Rescue Act of 2009" - the idea is to have the government take over foreclosed homes and to bring homeless (starting with Veterans) and others in need of housing, to occupy these homes. Each home would be overseen by someone performing National Service. The homes' mortgages would be paid by the government, according to the current appraised value, with a 7 year balloon for principal repayment. Maybe values will go up by then. This would take all this housing off the market, create a socially responsible program for helping the most disenfranchised portion of our population, allow for the homes not to fall into disrepair, and be restored as needed, including some "green" componants, create a national service program and establish a "beachhead" for future Community Living Centers.
Technical High Schools of America
 In many places in America, the drop out rate in High School is 50%. Rather than requiring all students to perform at a certain level academically, or be kicked out, it should be encouraged to have each student learn a skill, if an academic course is not what suits them. In the 8th grade a student could choose an academic path or a technical path to begin the next year. Some skills may take 2 years, some 4 (or more). Schools could be converted and other structures used for the new Technical High Schools. A trained individual is better equipped to survive in life an be productive.
Respectively Submitted,
Donald S. Weiss
Feb. 17, 2009
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New Changes - New Ideas
October, 2008
Since I wrote the information & ideas below, much has changed in America, & the world. The number of foreclosed homes in America is into the millions. The number of homes that are worth less than their mortgages is also in the millions. My idea of Community Living Centers, below, could begin immediately by using foreclosed homes as places to house the homeless - a major priority in America, I believe - and the poor also.
Large communities of foreclosed homes would allow for a more productive CLC enviornment. These home would then be off the market and greatly reduce the supply of houses for sale which should help bolster the market considerably. Some of the homes could be used for housing the eldery. 4 - 8 eldery people could share a 4 BR house with "coverage" shared between nearby houses. This would be a significant alternative for our elderly who do not want to take care of themselves completely and want companionship and would be considerably less costly than assisted living or a nursing home.
Respectively Submitted
Donald S. Weiss
October 19, 2008
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COMMUNITY LIVING CENTERS
A LONG TERM SOLUTION TO POVERTY (and HOMELESSNESS)
 America is at a crossroads. Most Americans have little confidence in our future and fear for our economic future. Most American cities are suffering huge budget deficits. America is becoming a country of rich and poor. This can change. How we deal with poverty is of utmost importance. Most American cities have huge populations of poor. We have become accustomed to this as we have no other alternative to poverty.
My idea, I believe, would help us restore our cities, create an economic boom in America and give Americans hope that there is a better future.
If it is estimated that there are 1 million poor people in NYC and each of them cost government(s) $50,000 per year to support, with the various social services, medical, etc. and these people were replaced by middle class and upper middle class (there would be the demand, but the Rent Stabilization law in NYC has "cemented in" NYC's population base at its lowest socio economic level), who generated $50,000 per year in tax revenue, by paying taxes and the flow of money spent, this would create an additional $1 trillion a year in revenue!
In Los Angeles recently the City Council voted for a 50 year moratorium on the conversion of any hotel over a certain size (I read, I believe, that there are about 250 hotels that qualify) that house poor people to be converted unless alternative housing could be found for all the residents. Again, no alternative to poverty so the grand downtown hotels that once catered to a middle class and upper middle class tourist are relegated to poverty. Community Living Centers could provide the alternative. Maybe someday downtown LA could once again be attractive for the middle class.
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Best Long Term Solution for Poverty and Homelessness -
A “Revolution” of our Social Service System
Community Living Centers (CLC’s)
Philosophy: It does not make a lot of sense to take care of our poor ( and homeless in our most expensive real estate, our cities. We should take care of the bulk of this population in our least expensive real estate - rural America or cities that require revitalization (i.e. Buffalo, Detroit). The poor and the homeless have been housed and cared for in our cities because we have no other alternative for poverty.
The Plan: CLC’s would be constructed to become towns and cities. Just the homeless population in America has been estimated at approximately 1 million - and there are about 30 million poor. I am not sure how many are in cities, but the L.A. Times recently reported that 40% of LA’s population is considered poor. CLC’s would:
1. Be geared toward teaching skills - if a person is capable of learning a skill. They could then work wherever they chose to.
2. Have profit oriented business that the members would be obliged to participate in - farming, manufacturing, cottage industries, call centers, etc. This will allow the member to be productive and to contribute to their own sustenance.
3. Members would help with communal cooking, child care, cleaning & maintenance.
4. Qualifying members would be allowed to buy their units with low interest government loans - let them build up equity also.
5. Become a venue for national community service - let our young people help lift up these two disenfranchised populations. Doctors in residence could spend time at CLC’s to help with the myriad of medical needs.
6. Be mandatory for new immigrants to:
A. Allow us to make sure they are not here to destroy us
B. Allow them to learn English
C. Teach them a skill, if needed.
D. Teach them about America
7. Be sponsored by wealthy American and/or Corporations - The Oprah Winfrey Community Living Centers - teaching “X, Y & Z” - later to be known as Oprah Winfrey, Illinois.
The Result:
1. America would take pride in properly taking care of, and directing, the homeless & poor.
2. The cost of their care would be greatly reduced as they would be almost self sufficient, hopefully.
3. Qualifying members would have a chance to own their own real estate and build up equity
4. Our great American cities would be allowed to return to havens for the middle class & upper middle class - we could choose the poor who would be “allowed” to live in our gentrified cities.
5. Massive economic growth would take place as we build CLC’s & refurbish our cities.
Respectively Submitted:
Donald S. Weiss
February 19, 2008
DWeiss5348@aol.com
DSWeissWebSites.com
HFRA-2-19-08
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Community Living Centers
A "Solution" to the Problem of Poverty and Homelessness in Los Angeles (and elsewhere).
 The problem of poverty and homelessness in Los Angeles, and most other American cities, has been unsolved thus far. It has been estimated by the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty that there are between 700,000 and 2 million homeless people in America on any given night. I am not certain of the estimated number of homeless in L.A., but I did hear recently that there are about 18,000 homeless young adults and children in American and half of them are in Los Angeles.
I believe the concept of Community Living Centers (CLC’s) would finally solve the problem of where to "house" the poor and homeless and how to deal with their problems to help them learn how to help themselves. My idea is that CLC’s would be built in very rural areas where land is cheap and where there would be little or no opposition to this development. CLC’s could be built, physically, by constructing small (200 sq. ft.) individual modular housing units with a bathroom and small kitchen or multi-family units. Some shared housing could also be built. CLC’s could house as many people as conditions dictate, as they may expand over time and even allow for the conversion to real towns with ownership of the "houses" encouraged.
Each CLC would be geared toward teaching a specific skill - one that the person would like to learn or where there is a need in society for that skill, or if that person is not capable of learning a skill, each CLC would have a mechanism for the "member" to be productive - manufacturing, farming, cottage industries, etc. This would allow the member to be productive during the day and help contribute to their own sustenance.
This is the way the Kibbutz in Israel was developed. Also, similar to the Kibbutz, each member would contribute to their own sustenance by doing cooking, cleaning, maintenance, child care, etc. The CLC would operate with a structure to allow for decisions to be made and for the CLC to function properly and be monitored.
The CLC would, hopefully, give the member the skill level to get a job and live independently, if that is what they want. They may want to get a job and stay at the CLC. New development would occur on or near the CLC to be close to the new skilled labor pool. For example, could this allow for us to use our unemployed, and even homeless Americans, to become competent call center reps so we could give the employment to Americans (sorry, India).
In addition, I would encourage a CLC to be named after a benefactor - personal or corporate. This name could continue if the CLC became a town. For example, Bill Gates might be interested in a Community Living Center for computer skills (I heard he was good at that!) and it could be know as the Bill Gates Community Living Center. And, if in time, it became a town, it could be Bill Gates, California. Not a bad way to be remembered (assuming the town flourishes).
CLC’s could also be used as a way station for new immigrants that come to America. It would serve many functions: allow us to make sure that person is not here to destroy us; teach that person about America and to read and speak English (no more pressing #1 for English!); teach them a skill for employment. Illegal immigrants would be sent to an Illegal Immigrant CLC where it would be determined if they were to be made legal and sent to another CLC or deported.
Although the problem of homelessness in America is huge, there is also a huge problem with poverty. We have become accustomed to accept that we take care of poverty in our cities. Since urban real estate is now in high demand, it does not seem like a good decision to deal with poverty and homelessness in expensive real estate. My original concept of the CLC was for the poor of America: to allow for a place for them to be, other than our cities, so they could learn a skill or be productive. This would also allow our American cities to become middle class again! I read that one third of the population of L.A. is considered poor.
CLC’s could produce a degree of wealth in America by allowing the units to be purchased, with low interest government loans, etc., which would create real estate equity for those who were once poor!
One major problem is how to deal with all the medical issues, both mental and physical, that will be encountered with this population base. I think the answer to require National Service at a CLC, which would include medical students. Some CLC’s would also "specialize" in dealing with people with medical problems and they would be at a facility that dealt specifically with the problem they had.
CLC’s could also have a number of units for people who want to volunteer and become part of this "healing process" for America. Some people may choose to pay to live at the CLC. The CLC should allow for a greatly reduced cost to America for taking care of the poor and homeless as they will be productive, be earning money, and will help share in taking care of their own and other’s needs.
My recent introduction to Kabbalah has given me the foundation to move forward with this idea and for this "presentation" to the City of Los Angeles. I believe the healing nature of Kabbalah would have an extremely positive impact on the future of this population that we will be taking responsibility for. Kabbalah’s existing programs, Technology for the Soul and Spirituality for Kids, have helped thousands in "grounding" themselves. Raising Melawe has been the single program to recognize the horror of poverty that exits there and to try to deal with it in a spiritual way for healing and personal progress.
Respectfully Submitted:
Donald S. Weiss
April 29, 2007
DWeiss5348@aol.com
DSWeissWebSites.com
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The Homeless & Foreclosure Rescue Act of 2008
A SHORT TERM SOLUTION TO HOMELESSNESS IN AMERICA
Proposal: The Federal Government will strongly encourage, or oblige, banks to give a stay on foreclosure to those homeowners who are threatened to loosing their homes to foreclosure (not investors) in consideration for taking in a homeless person. A monthly stipend of $400 would be paid to the homeowner for food, etc. for the homeless person.
Benefits: Solve 2 serious problems, at least in the short term. Better ability for social workers to follow up on homeless (and those who were loosing their home). It would help the national (& world) economy by reducing the number of foreclosures. Banks would favor this as they would not have to write down the losses from foreclosures. The homeowner & the homeless would be helping each other while also helping America!
Shortfalls: Need homeowner, & homeless, to sign “Hold Harmless” Agreement. Will cost the government money. Estimate: If payment of $400 per month is paid for each homeowner and 100,000 homeless & property owners threatened with foreclosure take advantage of this program, the cost would be $480 million plus administrative costs. - a mere pittance compared to the $168 billion that George is having printed and is being given away!
Trade Offs: Maybe in time the poor and homeless will get back on their feet and contribute to society and be able to work and the homeowner who did not loose their home will help stabilize the real estate, and mortgage and should allow them some flexibility in remaining solvent.
Respectfully Submitted:
Donald S. Weiss
June 29, 2007
DWeiss5348@aol.com
DSWeissWebSites.com
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