Karyn Cook, Chairperson of the Suffolk chapter of the Hampton Roads TEA Party sent me this yesterday. While many of us heard during the rushed budget debates that Suffolk was going to start charging us $18/month for trash pick up, how many property owners in Suffolk actually realized this?
"Yesterday I came home to find this huge blue "Property of the City of Suffolk" monster of a trash can (for recycling) in my driveway. It followed last week's delivery of a big green "City" monstrosity. I spoke to the City Refuse Manager this AM and told her I didn't order the cans and they are not practical for my use, living so far back off the road. I can dispose of my trash myself. Sure, if I want, but I will still be paying I'm told. OK, insult to injury: I find out what these undesired eyesores will cost me as well as every property owner in Suffolk: $210/year! Make it worse: On your real estate tax bill!! Of course you can imagine what happens when you don't pay your R.E. taxes...I think I've seen a few of those signs around town.. So, I'm guilty! I didn't examine the 2011-2012 Suffolk City budget line by line. I won't make that mistake ever again."
How many of us realized that the trash pickup charge was going to be added to our real estate taxes--allowing Suffolk to put a lean on our homes if we don't pay it? I didn’t. But that would be fair if Suffolk property owners could also put similar leans on the homes of City Council Members and the City Manager when they can't figure out how to live within a budget without jacking it up every year. News Flash: many of your constituents are on fixed incomes! Many don’t get annual raises—or even cost of living increases! A very high percentage of home owners are underwater on their mortgages for homes that are worth far less in 2011 than they were in 2007—even though City appraisals only reflect a fraction of the actual decline in market value! And as if you really didn't know, many more of us are out of work, working reduced hours, or getting paid less now than was the case just a couple of years ago.
And isn't this just one more reason to demand that the Suffolk City Manager put out her next city budget proposal at least 90 days before the Council schedules their first meeting to go over it? This annual game of sliding it out at the last legal minute and pushing Council Members up against a ticking clock to pass bad budgets has to end. No citizen showing up at a Public Meeting on the proposed new budget should ever hear a Council Member asking us to explain to them how to arrive at a balanced budget. After all, the only reason Suffolk has to schedule a Public Meeting on the Budget EVERY year in the first place is because Virginia Law requires that any municipality proposing a new budget that exceeds the current one by MORE THAN 1 PERCENT must do so. If Suffolk could live within it's means, the annual charade wouldn't be necessary! When Council Members have to ask their constituents for the keys to the Clue Locker before they can figure out how to spend less than the revenue coming in, something is very wrong! So give citizens a chance to help our elected officials perform the jobs that they admittedly aren't able to perform! Give us the proposed budget and time to look it over before bringing it up at the first Council working session!
12 comments:
And before you frustrated socialists start throwing around your focus group tested rhetoric that suggests that unsubstantiated claims of TEA Party racism and extremism will work for you so well that you can avoid dealing with the financial debacle and liberal government's contributions towards destroying the American family, jobs, industries, and critical infrastructure, perhaps you could engage your brains first and explain to me how every man, woman, and child in this nation--taxpayer or not--will be able to pay off the $47,000 tax bill the Federal Government has already run up against them (go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqoGORXAv2o to get an idea!)
Frugality starts at home. Perhaps Suffolk should try it. I know Suffolk could find a way to manage on a budget that is reduced by 3-5 percent a year for the next several years--but not without cutting some excess city employees, expenses, and perks--none by the way from the police, fire, and first responders by the way--their favorite target when any of us "racist" financial realists tell them the people can't afford what Council is proposing. We don't need all those nice to haves, many of the programs don't work--but the city refuses to listen.
Very lucent thoughts George, but do you really think it will do any good or serve any purpose? The only way to deal with this is to get the bums out and that just is not going to happen. When the masses get that nice slick mailer at election time, their eyes will glaze over and they will vote as told, as usual. Welcome to Suffolk politics and the control of the Suffolk Democrats.
Anon August 19, 2011 6:57 PM.
We're finally seeing some cities going bankrupt, others are slashing personnel, and still others continue to increase taxes because, as the economy continued to sink, the rosy forecasts of revenue that the Finance Officers always provide weren't being met by the revenue coming in! Nothing focuses municipal leadership like watching other municipalities who have also been spend every dime and putting nothing away in a hefty rainy day fund go under!
And giving everyone 90 days to look over the Budget before initiating the full court press on the Council Members to support it seems reasonable to me.
I've tried to piece the budget together before and the way the funding is cut up and scattered throughout the document (deliberately obtuse I might add), it would be difficult for any Council Member to figure out where the waste is hidden without plenty of time and some serious excel data analysis.
George,
It makes sense, but will never happen that way, because who on council would listen and who on council would go to that amount of work? Then you are going to get Linda Johnson pushing her agenda to do it her way and have "her" city manager make it so, even with Suffolk burning, Ms Johnson will play the fiddle to insure she has absolute control. If you never get her out of the mayor's seat, you will never get anything but more and more spending to keep her in the seat, a self (Ms Johnson) renforcing ocillation, so to say. As a first step, you need to get someone strong to challenge her in the next election, since she did not even get a majority of votes last election, we had to many knukkle-heads running in the race. Roger and about three others' needed to drop out and the results would have been very different. Roger had good ideas, but not the votes and the other's had their backers, but not enough of them and with a one on one race, it will be different. Ms Johnson just does not have that much backing or approval to win such a race in Suffolk but had enough in a six-way and that is what happened. Maybe a black candidate with wider appeal would work, and no I do not mean Mr Brown, Milteer, or Bennett. Maybe that young guy that is VP of the NAACP. Suffolk needs someone that is popular and with connections to people with good ideas, since voters do not vote for thinkers they vote on emotion and how they like in a candidate, or what a candiate will give them and theirs. Mr Duman is a nice popular guy, but not a thinker and won and Ms Martin is a vicious person and not one you could like very easily and lost. Ms Martin would have made a better council-member, but did not have the personality that voters could like and vote for, just that easy.
The key to what you want is getting Ms Johnson out and almost anyone else in the mayor's seat, to change the culture of what we now have on Suffolk Council. The next step is to fire the incumbent City Manager and most of her idiotic staff in City Hall.
I find it odd that the chairperson of the local tea party had no idea the new fee/tax was included in this years budget untill the new cans were delivered.
Way to stay on top of the issues!!
THe key is the voter registra office because that is where the votes are counted and there is where Johnson has connections. If you cannot make reforms and personnel changes to the process you might as well stay home because the Johnson fix is in. Trust no one.
Pock if you're in a pinch for a boat to go fishing simply duct tape the lid tightly to the can of one of those recycling bins and cut a hole in the middle so you can get in. In no time you have a watercraft fit for our city's needs that is pratical, lightweight, low maintenance and relatively inexpensive. It can be easily transported to the nearest fishing hot spot by hooking it to your car bumper or tied to the roof. If you get pulled over you can easily explain you are doing your civic duty being green with blue. Other water uses for these nifty blue bins is as a marine police river patrol craft and as a not so fast attack vessel for Johnson's Navy. When you're done having fun patch up the hole with duct tape, and pretend like it never happened. If you are sore and achy from all that paddeling around, fill the bin with warm water drop an air line from the compressor and you have a great Jacuzzi with controllable jets. The kiddies can join in too, just dump a box of Mr. Bubble. Isn't it wonderful we have such people on Market Street thinking about our needs.
August 20, 2011 2:22 PM
Tea Party members are citizens and property owners with full time jobs; family, church, and volunteer responsibilities; and hobbies and gardens--just like the rest of us. The only difference is that Tea Party supporters know enough about our history, economics, & human nature to know we're in deep trouble and are willing to get involved to help turn things around while most people just sit back an complain. Nice group of people though and more educated on average than the general public. But certainly not connected to insiders so they are in no better position to know everything that is going on behind closed doors among the municipal staff than anyone else who isn't waiting in line for a political handout or another municipal job here in Suffolk.
But they must be doing something right to have everyone in the ruling class so upset, throwing around claims of terrorism and racism, and generally losing it! That kind of fake outrage comes from people who want to reign in their spending! They can't stand it!
Well shucks folks, it didn't take the ladies long to vote their preferences for loud colors. Norfolk had its Mermaids planted everywhere, grabbing your attention. But Suffolk is superior and might get national acclaim for placing a bright blue cow in every yard in 430 square miles of Suffolk Virginia.
anon 6:42
I suggest you pay attention to what's happening. Mike voted AGAINST mandatory recycling on two occasions. Might want to check your facts next time.
In the words of San Fran Nan. Lets pass it before we actually know whats in it.
Actually I think the blue monsters bring some beauty to some of the property these cans are sitting on day after day after day after day.Whats next? Fines for the property dewelers. Hey that isnt a bad idea. More ways to generate cash for the city and jam the court docket with more civil regulations.
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