The Mayor and most of the City Council want an 8% each year for the next decade. At 8% per year, city spending doubles in just 9 years. How many of us expect our income to double in the next 9 years? If the city takes twice what they do now, where will each of us spend less?
Doubling again in 9 years makes for a budget 4 times today's in only 18 years. Overall inflation has nearly gone away. Its down to a percent or two per year. So why does the city need want more? They haven�t told us what they want to do with it, only that they want parks and libraries to spend less. If parks and libraries spend less and at the same time the total goes up 8%, somebody is getting a really nice bump. Who is it? David Brauer asked: �Is it fair to fold the library boards' referendum money within the levy cap? The library board received specific voter approval for that money - shouldn't it be counted on top of whatever cap is set? I mean, maybe it means lowering the 8% limit to 7%, or keeping the 8% plus the referendum money.� [Terrell responds] The voter is the highest authority. The voters decided to spend that money. Though the Council may not like what the voters decided, they should not be doing an end run around the results of that election. The Park Board, most of them anyway, doesn�t seem to be at all concerned about how much money they spend. They now want to take some of the prime property in the city for their palatial suite of offices. That they have well over a hundred administrative staff working in their central office raises the question of what all those people are doing. There is no shortage of office space downtown, where they are currently officed, with more space becoming available. Why, again, do they need the �Palace on the River�? Parks wants to build a new �art center� in Loring Park. There is no support in the neighborhood for it, the current building in Loring Park gets little use. The proposal replaces a collection of trees with a building and takes away a few street parking spaces that are much needed in the neighborhood. Oh, by the way, where are they going to get the money to fund programming in the proposed art center? There isn�t a bunch of extra money floating around. Adding programs, even maintenance expense for new buildings, shouldn�t be in the cards. Hmm... maybe the city should remember that adding programs shouldn't be in the cards for its budget too. Terrell Brown Loring Park terrell at terrellbrown dot org __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Autos - Get free new car price quotes http://autos.yahoo.com _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
