As we go into sustaining the highest tax ever in Lake Worth along with all those special assessments the City Manager is cooking up (things she doesn't want to call taxes but are), we now have The Community Sustainability Department, a new name for the Community Development Department and a new goal (sustainability) of which William Waters will be in charge. We have a very tough time trying to be sustainable so by calling an entire department as such, therefore we are. He gave a presentation last night on the areas of his responsibility:
- Code Compliance
- Foreclosure Fund
- Building Permits
- Planning & Zoning
The Planning & Preservation Manager will review the land development regulations and develop an annexation plan for the City, zoning maps and land-use maps, Historic District Guidelines and cover "green" initiatives in the LDR's.
The Community Planner will coordinate all projects that are presented to the P&Z Board and review building permit zoning applications.
The Preservation Planner will be focusing on historic preservation and archaeological planning and will oversee the six historical districts.
Code Compliance will be reviewing outstanding fines case by case and all properties that have been reviewed will be sent to collection, possibly recommended for foreclosure or assessed on the non-advalorem portion of the tax bill to force the owner to pay and bring the property into compliance. There will be a new manager in this department who will be on board Monday. Gina Baker is no longer with us. She took a "voluntary lay-off."
Now we will be in the housing loan business. The Housing and Property Management division will develop a housing loan and grant program which Waters says will consist of the development requirements of eligibility, a formal application, criteria for a grant or loan awards. It will assist low and moderate income families to develop a down payment and closing costs assistance program. Zero interest or very low interest on the mortgage for first time home buyers. He wants to implement a program for housing rehabilitation. We are still trying to attract poor people to our city. Noble goal.
I would wager to say that William Waters is the only top departmental head that will not be under the thumb of the city manager. Why? No one knows what in heck he's talking about. We are creating new positions so that there will be point people for every facet of our city it seems. Four new jobs will be created. We now will know who is responsible for screw ups; there will no longer be any guessing.
How do we re-tool our entire City (re-tool was always one of Varela's favorite words) and do all of this with NO money and salaries and benefits going up? Ooops, I forgot, the City is raising millions in tax increases.
The Agenda was totally changed for last night and what was originally to be discussed will be on tonight's agenda along with the special assessment for fire/rescue. The City knows what the advalorem is but won't be definitive...probably about 9 mils. This stuff is always a secret as they like to surprise you.
These budget workshop are a total waste of time. Suzanne Mulvehill was not in attendance last night--better things to do I would imagine. All you residents out there who did not attend were smarter than those of us who did. The entire Commission did not change one thing as presented--accepted it all just like the Finance (Non) Advisory Board did.
No one on the dais knew where anything was in the City Manager's Budget for reference and had to continually ask what page they were on. Commissioner Maxwell distinctly had asked that the page numbers be included on future budget workshop agendas. And we thought we were the only ones ignored. I left after one hour as I felt I was being sprinkled with voodoo dust and nearly hypnotized by the presentation.
Ed Frey spoke last night at the CPNA meeting and we learned: the city is not going to be able to bill Fire Rescue as a non ad assessment because the County will not agree but they will add an assement fore the Fire Pension Fund which is going to cost the City close to 1.8 million. Each house will pay $60. Each multifamily rental property will pay $60 per unit and commercial will pay .13 a square foot. That means my business which last year paid $1280 for fire Rescue will now pay an additional $750 based on that formula while a house pays only $60. The city is making the business community pay for most of the pension obligations. At the same time the city is refusing to pay the county a $900,000 one time payment that was agreed under our deal. They have no idea what the county will do when they don't get paid. Next year the fire pension obligation could exceed 2 million and it gets worse after that.
ReplyDeleteWhy would someone open a business in this city when they face he highest electric rates in the state, and the higest taxes of any town in the county. We are taxing ourselves into bankruptcy.
All the changes proposed by Mr. Waters might be fine if our house was in order, but we all know that is not the case. Before we start expanding and reconfiguring, let's do a good job on the basic responsibilities of the positions. When we are competently managing our operations, then the CM can talk about additional staff.
ReplyDeleteCommissioner Maxwell said the public thinks the City is hiding things from them which was confirmed by Mr. Waters. He said the personnel expenses associated with some of the building staff were moved into the general fund last year due to the state of the buidling fund. Now that the building fund is in better condition, they are going to move these expenses back to the buidling fund where they belong. sound like a shell game.
I just had a call from a business owner in the city who met with a group of other business owners this morning. They are literally in shock. They are struggling to stay afloat and can't believe their fate. They are all pretty pissed. I still want to know how much in dollars, overall, is the city raising on all these taxes, special assessments, water, etc?
ReplyDeleteWe were told last night that the logic ofthe assessments is that 13% of all the properties in the City pay no taxes and as a result $60 a house is not bad. I responded that the business community already pays high taxes and gives the city it's fair share. Using Frey's logic why would it be necessary to increase our taxes for this assessment almost 50%. That means you take from folks that don't pay and take way more from folks who do pay. He just looked like a deer in the headlights.
ReplyDeleteWe were not invited to any meeting for business. Who held it?
My argument has always been if you can't collect it in taxes (the only fair way is by property value) then you must do it by square footage for all. Someone making $10,000 a year, as an example, paying the same as a guy making $100,000 is totally UNFAIR.
ReplyDeleteThe business people who met all have businesses in the same industrial area.
The 13% that Mr. Frey quoted that did not pay taxes, Only included those people that double homesteaded.Not everyone else that does not pay taxes....
ReplyDeleteIs there a clause in the Charter that we the residents can take emergency action to dissolve said Charter?
ReplyDeleteJust asking as the new motto should be:
Dissolve, Divide and Re-organize for this city!