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10/28/06 |
I'm
voting against all 12 propositions. |
I happened to be cruising the cable channels the
other day and came across the
Dallas City Council meeting.
It was no surprise that the topic was another tax
abatement, this time for the developer
of Pinnacle Park project.
Despite the success of this development,
certain council members were
hell bent on granting yet another
tax abatement for this project.
As I read The Dallas
Morning News, hardly a week goes by when the
city council is there ready to grant yet another
tax abatement to a developer.
This is despite the disproportionant
amount of tax revenues coming from residential
property as opposed to commercial/business property.
Last week, the council wrestled
with Dean and the questionable relationship between
Dean and Councilman
Blaydes. The $500.000.00
was chicken feed to some on the council. It is no
surprise since the residential taxpayer foots
the bill. This is not new.
The city can't control itself in its attempts to please well financed
developers. One would think certain council
members would show more discretion in regard to
their travels on the city's wallet.
When I attended a town hall meeting on the bond proposal,
the aura was like a big party: "Look
at all the money we have. Help us spend it".
No word from the city that this is
taxpayers' money and we will
be footing the bill, no complete disclosure
about the estimated tax burden to a
homeowner would have pay. The
estimates conveniently omitted the greater than 10%
per year the Dallas County Appraisal District increases the value of
your home.
There is no real assurance bond money would be
spent as intended and not diverted to other projects
such as the over budgeted suspension bridges that will
grace the flood plains of the Trinity River.
This brings to mind several points:
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Councilman Mitchell Rasansky suggested to his
colleagues that the
voters be allowed to approve the suspension
bridges. This idea died a quiet death
due to lack of a second. Of course,
those who support this project would not want a
vote due to the distinct possibility of it not passing. No voting is
just as effective as a no vote in when the
project would be turned down. |
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| 2) |
Councilman Rasansky warned
during the Pinnacle Park tax
abatement discussion that sooner or later the
taxpayers would revolt. Some time ago, there was an
article in the Wall Street Journal
regarding various municipalities being sued by
taxpayers. This may
be the only way to get your elected
officials' attention. Perhaps a tax revolt is
in order after reading about and watching the
council dole out developer abatements down at
city hall. |
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| 3)
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I wonder where
I can get my own personal abatement too. After all if
developers get them like candy at Halloween then why can't the
residential taxpayers get one too? After all we live here too. It is our city
too. Oh. but I forgot that the city of Dallas' slogan is "Dallas owned by
developers". |
Needless to say, I am
saddened to have to vote
against the upcoming bond proposals
because because tax abatements and shuffling of bond monies
is
standard operating procedure down at city hall.
If the city council showed
more control of itself in tax abatements, if
they had a stricter form of ethics, and if there
was more assurance that the bond monies would
go to the projects where they were intended,
I might have been more receptive to the price tag of
OVER A BILLION DOLLARS!
Whatever happened to the FBI investigation?
David W. Tuthill
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