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The environment is a scarce resource. Some politicians actually understand that but there are others, like our Palm Beach County Commission, who approve of all development no matter the cost. They are afraid of putting any responsibility on the developer with additional taxes that could put a burden on his entrepreneurship as he may go somewhere else with his concrete project. Even in Lake Worth we give economic development incentives along with reduced electric rates to attract growth, growth that we are paying for in the Park of Commerce, costs to the taxpayer that will never be recaptured in advalorem. Have you driven out there recently and seen all that construction? Ungodly with huge concrete warehouses.
The County continues to allow new communities to be built and even allowed environmental sprawl when a brand new city, Westlake, (Minto West) was formed allowing 4,500 homes plus commercial to be built on agricultural land. The entire development will be slightly larger than the City of Lake Worth. Although Westlake will generate $58.7 million in impact fee revenue for the county with and estimated $42 million of that for roads and $7.5 million will be for schools, the future tax burden for the maintenance will be on all the residents of the county.
Now the School Board already has the one cent penny sales tax spent with its desire for a new high school and three additional elementary schools thanks to all this growth that the County commissioners voted for over the past eight years.
Schools in existence need repairs and are a constant struggle to maintain as funds are stretched. On top of all of this, teachers want a raise and perhaps they would get one if the state stopped many of these tax credits, tax exemptions, tax refunds or outright grants to all these developers paving over our state. These are tax dollars that would otherwise go to pay our teachers or to build our roads.
Which reminds me, vote for Drew Martin for County Commissioner District 3. He's the only candidate that cares about the over development in our county.
It seems that if the illegal immigrants were sent back to their own countries, there would be no demand for more homes and more schools in ecologically sensitive areas of South Florida. We'd have plenty of houses and land and schools for all Americans. What is Drew's position on illegal immigration?
ReplyDeleteI don 't know his position but it is only Democrats who are running. Dave Kerner is endorsed by Shelley Vana who has voted every single time for developers.
ReplyDeleteWe do know, however, his position on over-development especially in the Ag Reserve, the one cent sales tax as well as the Atlanta Braves at John Prince Park. He is against.
Remember it's Corruption County. The County Commission is selling their votes to the highest bidding developers, ruining the western landscape, creating traffic nightmares, and paving enough green space to cause greater flooding problems, and choke off the oxygen created by the existing trees.
ReplyDeleteDREW MARTIN will be a vote for sanity on the Commission. He's an honest man who is dedicated to preserving the little of Florida's beauty we have left.
I am voting NO on the one cent sales tax hike. Actually it is a 17% increase to us all. The School Board was stupid to hitch their wagon to this corrupt county.No more developer/corporate handouts!
ReplyDeleteDrew Martin in the only one who to me displays a complete and thorough knowledge of the true cost of all this catering to development. It is not a win-win for us but a BIG loss to the taxpayers that extends and grows exponentially into the future. All of our costs go up while we lose our quality of life and actually threaten continued livability here. The more concrete you put up, the more storm water runoff and flooding there will be. We're shooting ourselves in the foot for short term gains exclusively for developers. Each time we sell out the Ag Reserve, we buy into more flooding.
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