The prior Post by New Milford Native is right on the money. Pun intended. But let's also look at our Town Council. When will its Members realize that the taxpayers have had enough? Will it wait for the Budget referenda?
Let's take a quick look at what's on the table. Sewer expansion, $35,000,000. Library expansion, $8,000,000. Ambulance barn, $3,500,000. Emergency communication system, $1,5000,000. East Street building renovation, a few million. A group wants a new aquatic center, indoor track, tennis courts and soccer fields.
Do Council Members think that there's a bottomless pot o' gold for their taking?
Are Council Members talking to their constituents?
Do Council Members ever talk to the Town's Chief Financial Officer about the Town's finances? Unfortunately, it seems that they do not.
We have a wild Budget season upon us.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Time For Council To Say 'No'
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4 comments:
Having lived here since 1959 I can't remember a year when the taxes collected was actually less then the prior year or the bottom line of a budget was less then the prior year. Every year we hear that the taxes will only be 40 dollars a month more then the current year. Great, but try this exercise for a minute. Make believe your paycheck doesn't increase and there is little or no chance that it will. Assume you bought your house for $50,000 and the Town now has it valued at $475,000. Let's say that you love New Milford and over the years you raised your family here, volunteered in various civic organizations and even held an elected or appointed position in the Town government. Now lets factor in the increases of utilities and the cost of living. What do you suppose one of, if not the largest monthly expense this person has? Could it be the local property tax at something like $433? Look at how quickly that increases each year with just a small budget increase.
Maybe the Town should post signs saying 'Welcome to New Milford. Too bad you won't beable to stay here if you retire or lose your job'. Maybe we should give the same consideration to our seniors as we do to our childern. How about capping their taxes or giving them large tax abatements? The baby boomers are aging but they are still the largest segment of the population. They are the generation of the 'american dream' maybe we should try to perserve it for them.
Look at all the "projects" the Town wants to do. They don't have the guts to present them to the taxpayers as a single bonding package as the bottom line would scare the daylights out of everyone. By presenting each project sepparately the cost 'looks' less until it's time to actually pay them back. If the Town was run like a business they would present a single capital plan that covered all needs with timeline projections.
I am dying with anticipation to see how the Council exercises its new powers regarding the budgets.
Will they cave, and pass the BOE budget as presented in order to show they are "for the children"...in order to protect their elected offices?
Or will they use their power wisely, and take the propaganda from the PTO and other terrorist PAC organizations who dare to parade their children around in public, crying foul and claiming destitution, with a grain of salt?
Will be very interesting to follow indeed.
For those of you who've never lived elsewhere, look on line to see what property taxes are in other states. Then, compare them to the same property in 1959. Do you think they've remained flat or gone up?
While everyone sympathizes with your story, it is the same story that gets played out across the country. Imagine what it costs in property taxes to live in Nassau County, Westchester County, or Fairfield County? People who bought there in 1959 have it tougher than you.
This gets played out all over the country, so NM is not unique.
Have you applied for the senior citizen property tax program. I believe it will freeze or limit your increases - check it out!
What in the world is happening in this town? I have been reading your site and all I see are complaints about the taxes and the people on our Boards.
Hopefully these are the voters.
I read about the Sports Complex that someone thought up and wonder what they are thinking. There are a lot of things that would be nice to have but do we really need them?
They want to be able to play every conciveable sport in this building and problably have town employees to run it!! How much do they think this would cost?
I for one cannot afford this luxury.
If you think back to the pool fiasco...nice idea..until it turns into much much more than a pool with male and female changing and showering rooms. If it were kept simple, I believe the idea would have passed. But in come the architects and the Committees and before long there were computer rooms, meeting rooms for millions of dollars.
Boardman and Pickett District ball fields are non-taxable to the companies that own them. Most are volunteers who run the programs so there is no cost to the Town but a lot of benefits. We have The Club, the Sport Center on Still River and Gymnastics on Pickett District, which also has a pool for learning to swim.
I believe the kids should do what we did growing up... "GO OUTSIDE". Do they remember that fresh air is good for growing children?
I'm not sure what it will take for the lower and middle class to get off their lazy butts and get involved. They seem to be the complainers, not the doers.
How high do they want their tax bill to go up before they speak? There was a time when it was easy to let someone else take control but they have to see where that has led us. The new homeowners think this is their playground..our Boards are out of control spenders and we allow it to happen. They continually vote for the same ole candidates and still wonder why things don't change.
I'm concerned because every time I pick up the paper there's another multi-million dollar plan. The ambulance barn, that we do need, has turned into a 10,000 sq ft area with everything and more. The library addition..do we need a new childrens area..yes. Do we need everything they want? NO! Less young adults go to the library now then when I grew up. You can already see the what they will come up with for our Schools! Upgrades with all the bells and gadgets...additions...repairs that should have been taken care of when they broke. How is it that the Town Hall has stood for so many years and looks wonderful?
It's time to STAND UP! BE COUNTED! and most of all VOTE!!!
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