We're a bit confused by this. Why, you ask? Simply put, we don't see this as a reality!
What is the City Council doing to educate themselves? Are they making decisions to spend our tax money without even reading the law books?
Council Members:
1. New Albany Code of Laws are in a printed 3 inch binder notebook published by American Legal Publishing. Each City Council Member is given a copy of this book by the City Clerk when they are sworn in to office.
2. Indiana Code of Laws, commonly known as IC Code can be found on the Internet at: http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code
3. How much money is going into each TIF area that could have gone into our General Fund?
4. Why don't the Developers pay for their own roads and sewer lines?
Doug England and Carl Malysz are in a hurry to have the Council pledge TIF and EDIT money so when the sewer repair bills come due there will be no TIF or EDIT money left and then they will have to raise the sewer rates.
How many other "unknown pledges" of taxpayers dollars has England made?
5. Council members how are you going to come up with the funds to fix 15th Street?
The Council members need to look at IC 36-4-9-7. It states a Deputy Mayor must be established by ordinance. The Council must approve the ordinance. The Mayor has "created" two Deputy Mayors and the Common Council has ignored the law!
6. You've expanded TIF areas with out looking at the impact of what it is going to cost the taxpayers and the impact of the loss of dollars to our General Fund.
Case in point:
The attorney for Doctor's building on Green Valley Road told the city council that the property now only brings in about $3,000.00 in property taxes per year. But, if the Council would approve this new building for the Doctor, then, that new building would add about $60,000.00 per year to the New Albany Tax base.
Since you Council members agreed to place this property in a TIF Area, that money [$60,000] will not be added to the assessed value, but, will be placed in a separate fund.
This money CANNOT BE USED for our General Fund.
Any additions to the assessed value of property helps to "hold down our property tax increases for us homeowners."
Property taxes are increasing each year because PTRC [Property Tax Replacement Credit] is decreasing. State help on property taxes is going down.
The bottom line here Council President Gahan, and Council members Gonder, Messer, Zurschmiede, Coffey, Caesar, Price, McLaughlin and Council women Diane Benedetti:
"NEW ALBANY NEEDS TO ADD TO THE TAX BASE TO HOLD DOWN OUR PROPERTY TAXES."
Freedom Of Speech would like to say:
You council members are being lead by your NOSES to give our Mayor and Deputy Mayor and Redevelopment and the Board of Works the authority to continue to RAPE all the TAXPAYERS of New Albany!
If you love New Albany as much as we do, then, take 5 minutes of your time and spend the money to make the calls to the following officials:
* Charlie Pride: State Board of Accounts at - 317-232-2521
* Gail Snyder: at 317-407-2433 - Indiana Department of Local Government for Floyd County
Ask them these three questions:
1. Do TIF'S affect Property Taxes?
2. Do Tax Abatements affect property taxes?
3. Does local government spending, wasteful spending, misappropriation and mismanagement of local tax dollars affect our property taxes?
It's time for you to make decisions based on facts instead of politics!
Remember you are our elected public servants, you took an oath of office and you are being paid by the taxpayers to do what's best for your constituents.
Not self interest!The VOTERS elected Council Members to represent all the taxpayers and follow the law.
Why is our Council allowing the Deputy Mayor to hold workshops before Council meetings to coach the Council members on how to vote?
Why is the Council approving steps that will lead to more LONG TERM BONDS for the City Debt? These Bonds are a joke! We don't want to pay these costs, so, we put the BURDEN OF THE DEBT AND PAYMENTS ON OUR CHILDREN to pay in the future...
First, there is NO APPROVED City Budget for 2008, however, we are spending city money as if there was NO limit.
Second, what are we going to do when the STATE makes cuts in the requested 2008 Budget? Our sources tell us that it maybe mid-year before budget approval.
New Albany's:
* General Fund is -$1,695,512.40 in the red
* Motor Vehicle Highway Fund is - $473,374.34 in the red
* Sanitation is - $5,467,740.27 in the red
Source: Dec. 31, 2007 ~ Financial Report by Kay Garry, Controller
These shortages are carried over into 2008!
Do the math Council members. Do you really think that these millions of dollars that our city is in debt doesn't matter?
Are the Council members really this stupid?
Are they just bought and paid for? You ask what does that mean. That means they are obligated to the new administration to give our Mayor England and Deputy Mayor Malysz "carte blanche" and handing them a "blank check" to do what ever the hell they want to do!
So far our Council members have done exactly that and what ever ENGLAND wants England gets! Who is running our city? Deputy Mayor Carl Malysz or England?
Let's look at the real facts of what our Council has done so far:
* They voted to stop the Sewer Board & Stormwater lawsuit one meeting and the very next month council members voted to reinstate the very same lawsuit.
* You gave raises to our Mayor and our City Clerk.
By the way, the Clerk's Office has not updated January 2008 Sewer Board minutes, and City Council minutes. Why does she deserve a raise, isn't that part of her job as City Clerk?
* You have voted and approved England's "created new positions."
* New Deputy Mayor positions
* Expanded TIF areas
We challenge you Mayor England, Deputy Mayor Carl Malysz, Controller Kay Garry, and all 9 Council members to prove us wrong!
It is time that you 9 Council members get out into the real world.
It has become painfully obvious who cares and who doesn't about the real issues, housing, sewer overflows, garbage collection, repairs of 15th Street, fiscal responsibility and most of all accountability to us taxpayers.
You say, this does not affect you, what about tax base, does that affect you home owners?
Absolutely!
This is what is known as "the public's right to know."
Our Mayor England is fully aware that making this information public will bring about the many questions of accountability.
Mayor England and 9 Council members are gambling with the best interest of each and every taxpayer of New Albany.
One final question:
When did you 9 Council members approve the purchase of two - 2008 Malibu's from Coyle Chevrolet that's being used by our new administration, and which department did these funds come out of?
Freedom Of Speech is here to ring the wake-up bell and ask you 9 Council members not to look the other way!
