[Announce] Wanted: Ideas!

[Daniel W. Van Riper]

I consider fees for services to be identical to taxes.  What I think  
you mean, Andy, is to shift property taxes off the backs of land  
owners and onto the backs of those who use the services.

Several years ago, many of us who live near or around Lincoln Park  
Pool fought to save the pool from privatization, and we fought to  
keep it free for the kids who use it.  Most of us who led the fight  
were property owners, and several of us (including myself) owned  
multiple pieces of property in Albany.  We fully understood that the  
benefits derived from the pool outweighed any potential lowering of  
property taxes... a lowering that would be unlikely to happen, and  
would be piddling in any case if it were to happen.  The number one  
issue we raised in support of the pool was a very substantial one:   
The kids have few enough places to go in the summer, why do you want  
to take this one place away from them?

Austerity is at best a temporary measure, a way of deferring costs  
and payments until another time.  It may not work that way in a  
corporate "business" setting.  They tell you in business economics  
class that by laying off workers and cutting production your profit  
margin goes up.  True enough in that setting, but only because the  
corporation or "business" is shifting necessary work upon someone  
else's shoulders, that is, abrogating a degree of responsibility for  
production.  And all too often these days that means that government  
and the taxpayer takes up the slack.

For example, if Jerry Jennings had succeeded in privatizing Lincoln  
Park Pool, then instead of our property taxes paying for maintaining  
the pool the people who used it would have to pay market rates to use  
an exclusive pool.  You call it a "fee," I call it a privatized tax.   
Meanwhile, the City would still have to provide services such as  
police protection to the pool.  And if the privateer loses interest  
in the project or no longer makes a profit, he/she will simply  
abandon the property, "go out of business."  And the City and the  
property taxpayers will then be stuck with a burnt out facility in  
need of major work.

A better plan than austerity is to increase revenue.  And the only  
solid way to do that is to create housing to meet the sky rocketing  
demand.  And believe me, as a rental property owner in Albany, I can  
assure you that demand for housing in downtown Albany is greater than  
it has ever been, and only going to get greater.  Fix up the  
abandoned houses, build new ones, no matter how much it costs.  When  
that happens, the property tax revenue will solve all of our  
problems.  In addition, businesses will spring up and locate in the  
City to take advantage of all the people looking to dispose of their  
income.  And then, maybe we can have serious discussions about  
lowering property taxes.

-Dan VR


On Jun 23, 2007, at 8:39 PM, Andy Arthur wrote:

> On Fri, 2007-06-22 at 19:35 -0400, Sally Cummings 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, inspite 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!
>
> The key is to get the city's finances under control. The city needs to
> find ways to spend less.
>
> Albany already gets more state aid per capita then any other city  
> in New
> York State. They also spend more then many cities per capita. They  
> claim
> that hosting state government, with all it's property off the tax  
> rolls,
> yet if you look carefully it's not much worst then most state cities
> with the amount of exempt property.
>
> If anything, the city needs to look towards cutting property taxes.  
> The
> way they can afford that is to cut services and raise fees. They could
> for example raise fees to use city pools and cut hours that they are
> open. Limit the amount of overtime that city employees are allowed to
> work. Reduce the number of free events. Turn off every other street
> light after 11 PM (possibly combine this with a curfew). Use energy
> efficient lighting in all city buildings. Use both sides of sheets of
> paper.
>
> Albany needs to learn about austerity. They have been living high off
> the state for too many years. Raising taxes again is not an answer!
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Announce mailing list
> Announce at nodumpinthepinebush.org
> http://nodumpinthepinebush.org/mailman/listinfo/ 
> announce_nodumpinthepinebush.org