It seems that Bisno development has worked out deals on other projects that involve a Private Transfer tax.  What does this mean? A "fee" is taxed onto each property that is charged every time the property is sold.  The "fee" goes to a named party.  It can be the builder, an environmental or historical group (who often bargan for it in exchange for green lighing a development project).  This is a fee that does not have to be disclosed in standard Real Estate disclosures.  There are no limits as to percentage of the fee and no limits as to where the fee can go.

Could this be the reason a higher number of units is so important to Bisno? 

Certainly 500 SFR in a gated community would net the same sales amount as 1900 mixed use units however, the more units with a private transfer tax associated would be much more long term income, since condos tend to turn over more than SFRs.  Imagine 1900 units, each with a 3% "tax" that is paid back to the builder each time that unit is sold for the rest of time....quite a bit of money to be made there.

So, is the real argument not that we NEED more housing (because that isn't true) but that more housing means a longer string of ongoing income for the builder or for groups pushing to get the building approved?