Letter to the Editor: Boston as Anyplace, USA?

To the Editor:

Dorchester rents are rising, housing is hard to find, and neighbors are being forced out. Last week the City Council debated a proposal to keep more apartments available by limiting AirBNB-type rentals to 180 days a year. It was a spirited discussion during which one councillor was quoted as saying, “Why can’t [landlords] do what they want to do in their own property?”

Well, what will happen if Bostonians do what they want to in their own cars? We double-park and run into the store, just for a minute, of course. We blow through stop signs. We keep going through yellow lights and block people when their light turns green. We barrel down cut-through streets where kids live. We run red lights. And more.

Do we want Boston landlords to act like Boston drivers? What happens to those of us who rent?

We’re in a crisis – a housing affordability crisis. Dorchester is getting richer, whiter, and the turnover is rising. Pretty soon we’re going to be Anyplace USA. But property rights will reign supreme.

Mike Prokosch, Dorchester