[Announce] Wanted: Ideas!

[Daniel W. Van Riper]

For Jim's three ideas:

1) Taxing non-residents who work in the City.   Any sort of scheme  
like that would require approval from the State legislature.  That  
ain't gonna happen.  But there is no reason why the City of Albany  
can't start requiring city workers to live inside the city limits.   
In terms of tax revenue, however, that would be rather piddling.

2) Charge for trash pickup.  NO.  Trash is picked up in the City  
because there are too many parts of the City where people will simply  
dump their trash in the streets or vacant lots.  This is because the  
City has created slum neighborhoods by encouraging slum landlords to  
ruin said neighborhoods.  If such a situation happens where people  
begin to dump trash indiscriminately, then either the City will have  
to pay City workers to scrape up dumped trash, or let it pile up.   
Neither option is acceptable or feasible, it is easier and probably  
cheaper to pick up the trash in an orderly manner.  Besides... it is  
very likely that we the taxpayers are actually paying to maintain the  
Dump with our taxes.  A new fee would be a double tax.

3) Rehab abandoned properties.  Absolutely.  This is the one real  
solution.  Mayor Jennings is finally moving in this direction because  
of public pressure.  For most of his reign he ignored our  
neighborhoods and allowed slumlords to destroy housing at an ever  
increasing rate.  Instead of worrying about shrinking tax revenue  
because of abandoned property, he a) expanded the Dump, and b)  
depended more heavily than ever before on the weird arrangement that  
the City has with the County.  You see, the County actually pays the  
City lost tax revenue for abandoned properties.  This means that in  
order to balance the City's yearly budget, the City has a big  
incentive to encourage owners to abandon buildings!  And the best way  
to encourage owners to abandon buildings is to encourage  
slumlording.  More and more people have picked up on this, and are  
calling for an end to these policies.  The one politician who has a  
solid proposal to rehab abandoned property is good old Dominick  
Calsolaro.  (Check last week's Metroland cover story which is not up  
online yet.)

As for Sally's suggestions, I think the City should definitely get  
into the business of generating power:

http://www.albanyweblog.com/2006/09-Sep/09-16-06.html

And indeed, if Colonie can make money by siphoning off methane, we  
sure can.  Last I read in one of the daily papers a month or so back,  
Colonie is currently making lots more revenue than they had expected:

http://text.nyserda.org/Press_Releases/PressRelease.asp?i=119&d=2006

But the State of NY already requires all new State buildings and  
renovations to incorporate solar panels into their design.  That  
includes SUNY, all DASNY constructed buildings, etc.  That is one of  
few and rare positive things that we can attribute to Pataki.

For the past two years, SUNY Albany has conducted a program of  
salvaging the valuable trash left by students, sorting it, and  
donating it to worthy organizations.  This is according to Tom  
Gephardt's reports to CANA.

And yeah, if we ask our city officials to "do something" they will  
give us the runaround.  Politicians don't work like that.  They only  
do what someone tells them to do.  so either some sleazebag  
corporation tells Jerry Jennings they want to use his Dump for half  
price, or WE tell Jennings to close it and balance the City budget  
elsewhere.  It's our choice.  We're in the driver;'s seat, whether we  
acknowledge it or not.

By the way, where does the County get the cash to pay the City for  
abandoned properties?  Why, from property taxes.  Ain't that cute?

-Dan Van Riper




On Jun 23, 2007, at 5:06 PM, Sally Cummings wrote:

>
> Response to James Travers.
>
> Yes, I do have ideas that I was going to make.  I suggested them to  
> Willard Bruce the Commissioner of OGS and he was the one who told  
> me that I should tell them to Tom Nitido, City Comptroller and  
> Chris Hearley, Budget Director.  I have made many of my suggestions  
> at Common Council meetings.   Mr. Bruce said that so far nothing  
> else is being done to research into more funding to supplement the  
> landfill revenue.  If the City Council don't seem able to come up  
> with alternatives, I feel that we the people, who do not want that  
> smelly dump in the Pinebush ( which should never have been put  
> there in the first place), could make suggestions and put pressure  
> on this weak administration to come up with solutions.
>
> Here is what I have so far:
>
> Install solar panels on all flat top buildings (SUNYA, OGS, the  
> South Mall, etc.), selling the electricity back to the provider.   
> Request the State to help fund the installation.
>
> Install sufficient collectors to collect all the methane gas from  
> the landfill, reducing the greenhouse gas emissions and generating  
> revenue by using it for the City or selling it.
>
> Install windmills in open areas to generate power, possibly Coeymans.
>
> Make abandoned buildings into "collection sites" for usable  
> furniture and household goods left by students when they leave and  
> also general households.  Non profits could run them and pay rent  
> for the buildings.
>
> Separate out wood, metals, other plastics, plate glass, builders'  
> rubble, tires, roofing shingles, etc., all of which can be sold to  
> plants for reuse.  This would bring in revenue and also remove huge  
> amounts from being deposited into the landfill.
>
> Your suggestion to meet with the Mayor. -  I have tried on numerous  
> occasions to speak with him, but have not so far succeeded in  
> getting an interview.  He did however, tell me to speak with one of  
> his deputies which I did who was very impressed and told me that he  
> would send all my suggestions to Willard Bruce and he would get  
> back with me.  I never heard back and this was over 6 months ago.   
> This was why I went to see Willard Bruce on my own.  He liked my  
> ideas too, but said his hands were tied and that I should speak  
> with the City Comptroller.  This is why I am planning on going and  
> was hoping that I could get more suggestions to add more weight to  
> the suggestions.
>
> Sally Cummings
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 6/23/07, James Travers <jatrav at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Sally,
>
> With all due respect, what ideas do you have on how to replace the  
> lost revenue that the landfill closing will result in? Surely you  
> must have some. By sharing what your proposals are, we may also  
> avoid making redundant suggestions.
>
> That said, I would suggest that prior to your meeting with Nitido  
> you  first survey the members of the Common Council to gather their  
> input on what they may have thoughts on or have already suggested  
> to offset the revenue shortfall the landfill closing will cause. If  
> any have done so already, this will also avoid redundancy.
>
> Next, and again before meeting with the city comptroller, I would  
> suggest you meet with the Mayor to hear what his ideas he has to  
> offset the lost revenue, if any at all.
>
> Then, after gleaning the thoughts and suggestions of our elected  
> officials, and having completed compiling our input, is when you  
> should meet with the comptroller.
>
> While I find it a bit onerous that we are the ones who are  
> pressured to come up with a way to solve the fiscal mismanagement  
> of the city's finances instead of our elected officials, regardless  
> of this, I will gather my thoughts on this and offer you a few  
> suggestions. But some may be unpopular.
>
> All will in part or completely replace the lost revenue.
>
> For now, here's a few:
>
> 1)   An income tax for all city residents and city employees living
>       outside the city.
>
> 2)   A fee charged to all households and businesses for trash pick
>       up,removal and disposal.
>
> 3)   Take through the city's power of eminent domain all
>        abandoned or vacant for three years properties, rehab them and
>        get them back on the tax rolls. This will restore not only a  
> huge
>        amount of money to the budget, but will alleviate many of the
>        city's problems its blighted neighborhoods present. (Also, it's
>        hard to fairly evaluate an immaculate and well kept home if the
>        adjoining properties are decrepit shells.)
>
> Lastly, in closing I would add that there's really no problem at  
> all in finding the funds to replace the budgetary shortfall.
>
> How's that?
>
> If the city can come up with a few hundred million dollars for an  
> unwanted and doomed for failure convention center then the city's  
> administrators should have no problem at all finding the funds to  
> replace the pittance in comparison monies lost to the city's  
> coffers created by the landfill 's closing.
>
> For more than a few years I and many others have been providing  
> Mike O'Brien and the other Common Council members with many, many  
> viable options to enhance the city's revenue stream to replace that  
> lost if the landfill is closed. We have encouraged city's leaders  
> at every turn to get out of the dirty, scandal ridden and corrupt  
> solid waste business.
>
> Nothing, absolutely nothing at all has been proposed by any CC  
> member to help offset this lost revenue stream in all that time.
>
> Not even an enhanced recycling program has been proposed, as is  
> required in their long term solid waste plan and their current  
> landfill operating permit, because it would reduce the flow of  
> trucks across the scales and hence, their tipping fees.
>
> This administration seems to want to continue doing business with  
> that mob of waste haulers regardless of what the citizens who put  
> them in office think or desire for their city.
>
> I'll be send you much more over the course of next week.
>
> Jim Travers
>
> Sally Cummings <sbgarden at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> To help the City of Albany become financially solvent without using  
> the landfill revenue to support/balance the budget, I am planning  
> on speaking to the City Comptroller to give him the ideas.  I am  
> thinking that perhaps several different funding sources could be  
> suggested that, together would bring in the needed income.
>
> Please email me your ideas as soon as possible.  They still have it  
> on their plans to go ahead with the expansion, in spite of all the  
> opposition.  I have been told that it is a "done deal", so we have  
> to get our ideas in to them soon to try and head them off!
>
> I believe that they agree that it is not the best solution, but  
> they do not know of any other way to balance the budget.
>
> Any ideas you have, however small, would be gratefully appreciated.
>
> Sally Cummings
>
> Happy people don't have the best of everything but make the best of  
> everything they have
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> -- 
> Sally
>
> Happy people don't have the best of everything but make the best of  
> everything they have
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